Downers Grove Library Trustee Ousted For Alleged Homophobic Comments Wants Decision Reversed

DOWNERS GROVE, IL — Former Downers Grove Library Trustee Arthur Jaros wants the DuPage County Court to reverse a decision that removed him from the board of trustees after homophobic comments he allegedly made during a meeting in August. Jaros will appear in court on Sept. 19 to seek a preliminary injunction against his removal from the library board.

Jaros was removed from the library board after a unanimous decision by the Downers Grove Village Council on Sept. 5. His removal came after he reportedly made homophobic and racist comments at a board meeting about an inclusion program at the library. A member of the League of Women Voters was in attendance at the meeting and took notes that say Jaros objected to the idea of children at the library being exposed to depictions of homosexuality.

According to the notes, Jaros went on to share his personal stance on homosexuality as marriage between a man and a woman, citing the Illinois School Code's sex education section. Jaros allegedly stated that he felt others should "reject any inclusion and people different from white straight people."

Jaros called these accusations "defamatory" and has since filed a lawsuit against The League of Women Voters, Sue Farley, who recorded the notes in question, Downers Grove Mayor Martin Tully, and two village commissioners, Suburban Life reports.

According to a 2015 Chicago Tribune article, Jaros raised eyebrows when he was nominated to the Downers Grove Library Board of Trustees because of a book he attempted to have banned from a high school in 1999 for content he found inappropriate.

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