St. Charles library to reopen once more security in place

St. Charles Public Library officials say they are working to reopen the facility once they finalize hiring additional security services following backlash over the library’s COVID-19 masking policy.

Library officials are working with St. Charles police to put security measures in place prior to reopening the library that has been closed since Jan. 20. Attempts to reach library officials to see what security measures they are adding were unsuccessful.

On Jan. 18, a group of about 35 to 40 adults and children went into the building at 1 S. Sixth Ave. without wearing masks as part of a protest, officials said. An Instagram video by Awake Illinois shows people inside the library without masks reading books and doing puzzles as police were called.

After the incident, library officials said they began receiving threatening emails and phone calls with statements like “they don’t even know what a threat to safety is yet,” “these people need to be shown what an actual ambush looks like,” “freedom rules, you guys are going to go down,” officials said in a statement on the library’s website.

One person tweeted “Imagine the reaction if you all went in there with loaded guns,” following the protest.

During a special virtual library board meeting last week, members approved closing the library until further notice.

“Our number one goal is the safety of our patrons and our employees,” Library Board President Robert Gephart said. “We narrowly avoided a patron-on-patron altercation. Afterward, the library started receiving phone calls threatening the health and safety of our staff and patrons. Looking at social media amplified our level of concern.”