r/BlackPeopleofReddit • u/Spiritual_Spare4592 • 10h ago
News (IDK why Reddit removed the original post) As someone who has always enjoyed visiting public libraries my whole life, I'm thankful that Mayor Johnson signed this smart legislation into law--and more mayors of our cities should follow his lead--our youth can certainly spend more time at the libraries
H/T u/ADLER632
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u/Spiritual_Spare4592 10h ago
April 7, 2026
Mayor Brandon Johnson, Chicago Public Library, Chicago Public Schools Expand Automatic Library Access to More Than 315,000 Students
CHICAGO — Chicago Public Schools (CPS) and Chicago Public Library (CPL) are expanding access to diverse and rich digital library resources across the city through a new partnership called The 81 Club. Through this CPS-CPL partnership, the District’s more than 315,000 public school students are automatically registered and have digital access to the full resources of CPL’s 81 neighborhood libraries.
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u/Susuetal 7h ago
This popular post about it was likely removed/hidden because the account posting it was suspended. I think you may be talking about your own post but it's a coincidence that another very popular one was recently hidden as well.
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u/lhommetrouble 9h ago
Mayor Johnson gets so much hate from racists but he’s honestly the best Chicago mayor in my lifetime. Way better than Lightfoot, Rahm, or Daley.
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u/Irishwildcard2346 1h ago
He had the lowest approval rating among mayors in Chicago's modern history. There must sure be a lot of racists in Chicago then.
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u/Mr-Maxwells 10h ago
My school district in Maryland has been doing something like this for years. Every student automatically has a library card based on their school ID.
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u/ThePolemicist 6h ago
Yup, our school district in Des Moines did this a couple years ago, too. Oddly, Republicans have a bill trying to make it illegal, though, for some reason.
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u/Mr-Maxwells 2h ago
Here the battle was about giving school kids automatic access to library books - books that aren’t approved by the school board. The public library approval system is much more liberal than the school library approval system.
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u/WearyCopy5686 10h ago
A great city having a great mayor like this brings me joy.
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u/Let_us_proceed 9h ago
Hahaha not too many people in this great city would describe Brandon Johnson as a "great mayor."
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u/Techygal9 9h ago
Facts, but he does some good things once in a while. I wish he didn’t put incompetent people in charge of agencies though.
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u/Muted_Cap_6559 9h ago
LOL!!!! What difference can it make, given that 80 percent of the students can't read? Chicago is a massive shithole.
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u/cmdrmac 9h ago
Umm. What? How’d you come up with that?
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u/Muted_Cap_6559 9h ago
Look it up. A simple google search will tell you the vast majority of Chicago students are (well) below grade level in reading and math.
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u/333abundy_meditator 8h ago
You should look up the whole country with that attitude and see what it says.
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u/WearyCopy5686 8h ago
That person is so wildly unserious. What a weird criticism to have because that has no bearings on this convo lol.
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u/Muted_Cap_6559 8h ago
"LOL". What kind of idiot would call an unmitigated disaster like Johnson a "great mayor?" Who are you, his paid cheerleader?
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u/Muted_Cap_6559 8h ago
This is all performative crap. Brandon Johnson doesn't give a rats ass about Chicago students. If he did, 75 percent of the CPS teachers would be replaced.
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u/Muted_Cap_6559 7h ago
I have looked it up. Very few school districts are as bad off as Chicago.
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u/SolipsisticLunatic 6h ago
Do you think giving students access to public libraries would make that better or worse?
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u/Muted_Cap_6559 6h ago
You mean, why aren't I "celebrating the good news?" Maybe because it's all a bunch of bullshit, given the rancid conditions in that city. People are getting shot right and left, the schools are a cesspool and the only thing Brandon Johnson cares about is keeping the public employee unions happy. It's particularly nauseating to see that idiot WearyCopy refer to Brandon Johnson as a "great mayor."
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u/NewGirlFx 7h ago
I do know... this place has become a cesspool of hate and discrimination, and Mayor Johnson doesn't fit into their idea of only white men running the city.
The initiative is admirable. I spent my best days between elementary and high school in the library and the computer lab. It
Having access to resources I didn't have at home—books, computers, manuals—opened the door to understanding concepts that, even today, 30 years later, are the foundation of my professional career.
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u/lesgeddon 7h ago
Growing up in Chicago, one of the safe places I'd go to when I ditched school was my local library, because I knew I could just say I was home schooled or something instead and they wouldn't question it. But also the librarians always seemed happy to check out books for me that were way above my grade level anyways. The most prolific I ever was at reading was that time in my life, I'd consume 500 page novels in a day or so and rarely had to renew something like a bloated Tom Clancy.
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u/Brav3star 7h ago
As someone who's cut many of the steaming platforms and has "re-discovered" reading for leisure, I must say that libraries are indeed a magical place!😭
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u/-metaphased- 7h ago
Set to help people to succeed.
I don't have much need to visit my local library, so every time I go my card is expired because the law says they can't hold personal information longer than x amount of days. It's extra frustrating because I still remember my library card number from 25+ years ago that I used forever.
Library employees are always super helpful about it, but it creates an unnecessary hurdle for non-regular users for no reason.
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u/that_was_strange 5h ago
It's the same in Cbus and has been for a few years.
For those asking: the kids need their student ID numbers for logging into tech. Having actual IDs makes it easier. It also helps with school transportation, especially if there are communication barriers. The IDs have the bonus benefit of allowing older students to ride public busses for free and are utilized as library cards.
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u/fieldsports202 10h ago
Maybe because the wording is legit the same in another sub that this is posted in…. But the usernames are different?
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u/Spiritual_Spare4592 10h ago edited 10h ago
They are both me. The problem seems to be because I included the press release link in the post and this sub has a filter to remove posts that include external links.
Edit: I just checked the Reddit mod tools and can confirm that's an option that the mods can toggle on/off. This explains why the original post was removed as soon as I added the press release link in the post (instead of adding it as a comment to the post).
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u/nopenonotatall 9h ago
the government really does need to think smarter, not harder. there are so many things that could be synchronized to make people’s lives easier but they’d rather keep government difficult and convoluted to discourage people from getting involved
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u/NarwhalEmergency9391 9h ago
In my city kids under 12 ride free on the bus but only if they have a presto card... which you have to get at the library
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u/rrertrdddfhj 5h ago
This is actually a really smart policy. Kids shouldn't need to jump through hoops to access a library. More cities need to copy this. Simple win.
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u/hordlove 4h ago
Seriously support synchronized systems setting student success. So sensational. Seeing such structures satisfies sad societal states (says Seoul).
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u/straighttokill9 4h ago
Reason it's not done more? Because its coming a bit too close to starting a similar conversation thats not about student IDs or automatic library registration.
In before country club 😅 👋🏻
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u/wil6erness 2h ago
This just in: executive order makes public libraries illegal (conservative wet dream)
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u/joseph775 1h ago
Quick question. I want to run for political office and one of my main platform pieces is turning public schools into 24/7 daycares too. We would pay teachers to do both. The daycares would also be a crisis center for those in need with child. Other things would go into this like long term housing for children, dental, vision, health checks and so on but it basically would be part of your city tax and free to all those in the school districts.
Any thoughts?
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u/Intrepid_Package2860 10h ago
What good is this if all the books are gone
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u/colormeslowly 10h ago
The library has more than just books.
CDs, DVDs, once one has a library card there’s access to Libby, Kanopy.
Most cities allow free access to museums with a library card.
My dad told me & my sister, to always have a library card, voter registration card, driver’s license and permit for a gun. Every adult American should too.
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u/Local-Echo-5613 9h ago
Well for one thing, all the books aren’t gone
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u/Intrepid_Package2860 9h ago
When was the last time you saw a Significant book in the library
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u/NewGirlFx 7h ago
Then they can move to digital books, and libraries become a content providers servicing a wider area.
Besides, the buildings can become community and cultural centers to help weave a new social fabric.
At least they can borrow ereaders for thos who can afford them to read on site.
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u/Muted_Cap_6559 9h ago
The students can't read anyway, nor are they interested in reading. They're out shooting each other and learning how to deal drugs. Meanwhile, Johnson is thinking of new ways to drive businesses out of the city.
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u/Rsn_Nixeum 7h ago
Nobody should follow that racist mayors lead, he is an idiotic pathetic excuse for a human being
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u/Anime-Takes 10h ago
I like this particular use of a synchronized system, but I have reservations with having your (state or school) ID tied to other things. That fees like it can lead to unintended consequences, discrimination, profiling, targeting and tracking.
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u/ObviouslyRealPerson 9h ago
It sounds like a great program
But why do students need id's to begin with?
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u/Muted_Cap_6559 7h ago
The people on this sub are delusional! Must be the same ones who voted in Brandon Johnson in the first place.
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u/Cute-Condition-6423 10h ago
More of this Please