Opposition Candidates
"He that lieth down with dogs shall rise up with fleas" –Benjamin Franklin
Hafezi Is A Liar And Hates LGBTQ+
In a discussion where he was trying to convince us he isn't a homophobe and doesn't want his extreme views to rule the library's collection, Hafezi shows us his true self.
Their petition was for one book: The Hips on the Drag Queen Go Swish Swish Swish. Now it's up to 3 books according to their video (see lower down the page. None refer to oral sex. They're early reader books. Listen and decide for yourself if this is porn.
It's all made more diabolical because elsewhere he claims to not want any books censored.
So either Hafezi is lying to you, fellow residents, or he and his team of homophobes have expanded their selection of books to be banned even further. Or both.
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She Turns On Her Team!
Kari thinks that all campaign activity should cease for her religious observance. Does that go for her group too or just her opposition? What day WOULD be ok for normal political activity?
First they want to ban one book, then it's two, then three, then four, and now she feels attacked if everyone doesn't observe her religion. How do her teammates feel about this?
They don't get to play victim when they're inciting violence and hate.
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Do They Know How Any Of This Works?
Let's throw your slate a bone here - nothing's being hidden. Reports aren't due till the end of quarter. But we think you knew already!
Or maybe you didn't. You can't run a campaign and you can't run a library.
Or maybe this is you trying to gaslight and create a narrative. Or maybe you think your supporters are stupid and will believe you.
Either way, time's running out for you to make a convincing argument that you're up to snuff. You're sure gonna get a lot of "flak" for this.
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Increasing Book Banning
In September they petitioned for one book to be banned (The Hips on the Drag Queen Go Swish, Swish, Swish). Then in November they added another book to the list (The Bare Naked Book). A couple days ago, they added another book to the list (If You’re a Drag Queen and You Know It). At 2:35 you can see their list.
And just last week they added Gender Queer to the list of objectionable books (as posted on their campaign FB page).
How many more books will be targeted by these four?
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They Don't Care About Sexual Abuse
The picture is from the book "The Bare Naked Book" (NOT the Drag Queen book she's added to her poster) and is used in Sex Education programs with young children across the country. It is wholly responsible for a 70% drop in substantiated sexual abuses against children - the very segment of the population that this group is supposedly trying to protect.
Why doesn't the "We Love Lwd Library" slate care enough about sexual assault on children to educate them?
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Pure Hatred
Kari is clearly speaking for the team since the other three on her slate are hiding from public view. What are they afraid of - being outed for their hate?
It appears Gutstein is visiting the library searching for books that oppose her world view. What she and her partners don't understand is libraries and how they work. For instance, Gender Queer is a graphic novel. Graphic novels are large and frequently shelved face out. While sometimes it's categorized as Young Adult, it is also categorized as Adult - DEPENDING ON THE VERSION OF THE BOOK. She is clearly demonstrating that while they might "Love LWD Library", they care only for the property and not the patrons. She and her running mates don't understand Library Science or books or pretty much anything other than their blinding hatred for the LGBTQIA+ community.
And, honestly, we know she's a liar already. Maybe she put the book there herself.
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Ethics
On Sunday Feb. 26, 2023, Kari Gutstein posted this unsigned letter on her campaign’s Facebook page. Someone else was distributing it around the Village. The letter isn’t signed by the person who wrote it but it does list the four candidates running on the book-censoring platform. And Kari has posted a picture of an entire word doc - complete with the word count and cursor. Was it Kari Gutstein who created this hateful piece of anti-LGBTQ rhetoric? Or did she just approve an unsigned piece of campaign propaganda without proper attribution.
An attribution, or disclaimer, is a statement placed on a public communication that identifies the person(s) who paid for the communication, and in some cases, the person(s) who authorized the communication. Kari and her fellow slate members keep showing Lincolnwood they are either sloppy, inexperienced, or consider themselves to be above the rules. They are not good enough to run for office, let alone run the Lincolnwood Library.
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As of 3/6/23, this letter has been removed from her facebook page.
Corruption
This is a fascinating look at corruption. Not only did Kari lie on her publicly available Statement of Economic Interest (a measure of ethics, not dollars), but now is she taking donations made to her campaign and profiting from them as well? She has a printing and promo business (ask the Library, they purchased from her). Below, her good friend - mysoginist-anti-Asian-antiLGBTQ-failed candidate Raul Tomsa - is asking for donations. Will they will directly profit Kari? Nobody knows. And we can't trust her to tell us the truth - she's already shown that she'll lie. If elected, will she continue to use your tax dollars for personal purposes?
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Outside Influencers
Per their website, these book censors SAY they don't want outside voices. In typical hypocrite fashion, they explicitly used "outside voices" in the crafting of their strategy to have LGBTQ books removed from the Lincolnwood Library.
"In interviews and in emails obtained through a public records request, the (ed. Chicago) Tribune learned the fiery meeting was weeks in the making. Preparations included a petition from residents opposed to the books bearing more than 100 signatures, residents on both sides of the issue peppering the library with comments and, about a week before the Oct. 24 meeting, parents dubious about the books meeting with conservative activist organization Heritage Action for America, based in Washington, D.C., for tips on getting out their message."
"Heritage Action for America spokesperson Carson Steelman confirmed that the organization’s regional director, Matt Crouch, met before the Oct. 24 meeting with Lincolnwood parents concerned about the book and the library’s programming."
Read this article to see how the language used by the Hate Slate candidates mirrors that of the organizations that support banning books, anti-LGBTQ efforts and racist calls to action. One example: Moms for Liberty and their associated organizations like the “I Love LWD Library” candidates all use variations of the theme, “not book banning, we’re simply asking for book boundaries.”
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Kari: Sloppy? Or does she think the rules don't apply to her?
Recently, Ms. Gutstein posted on her political Facebook page a picture of a letter she received. Curious, we investigated.
Filling out a Statement of Economic Interests is a requirement for all candidates. Its purpose is to see if a candidate has any financial interest in the government office she'd like to be a trustee for. This is about truth and public trust, not dollars.
Kari fraudulently signed her SoEI, stating she has no financial interest in running for Library Trustee, but that is not true. Kari has direct financial gain from doing business with the Library. Is she is untrustworthy, sloppy or does she think rules don’t apply to her? Should she be allowed to sit on a board that approves money that would go directly into her pocket? Say no to graft.
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He thinks we won't find out
Candidate Mohamed Hafezi stays quiet but was brought into the race by Ata Rehman, the person organizing the Lincolnwood Muslims Group (download the Petition to see where the group signed by including their calling card). Hafezi states that he's running to make the board diverse. Sadly, he and his team see diversity as little more than outward appearance rather than the diversity of ideas. His version of diversity brings with it the banning of books.
Kosir doesn't understand what "public" means
She claims that the board labeled her and her friends as racist but they did not. She was embarrassed because the petition she signed demanding to have LGBTQIA+ books moved went public, showing the PUBLIC who she and her friends truly are.
She does not understand that speaking at a public meeting is public information - and now she wants to be part of the board? How much will she cost the community in legal fees for OMA violations?
Serban Supports Anti-LGBTQIA+ and Christian-only institutions
Andrea Serban's Facebook posts encourage followers to support a local private school that promotes an anti-LGBTQIA+ pedagogy. This school's website and curriculum stoke fears about the "anti-Christian philosophy" in broader society and that "public school classrooms promote mutli-culturalism and gender tolerance."
Based on what she promotes on her Facebook page and that she signed the book challenge, Serban does not tolerate inclusivity of any kind. Unless you are White, Christian, and straight, she will not maintain the Lincolnwood Library's values of inclusivity and openness to all. She is not qulaified to be an elected official serving our diverse community.
Kosir thinks the Board and Library Staff are stupid
Here Jacqui shows us that she thinks the current highly educated library board and staff are stupid.