Chicago-area library rejects $3,000 donation from atheist blogger because he is ‘a hate group’

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

The trustees of the Morton Grove Library rejected a $3,000 donation from the “Friendly Atheist,” Hemant Mehta, because they believe he’s “a hate group.”

The controversy began when Park Commissioner Dan Ashta refused to to stand for the Pledge of Allegiance at a board meeting because, he told the Morton Grove Champion, he believes the words “one nation under God” violate the First Amendment separation of church and state, and “I have an obligation as an elected official to uphold the Constitution.”

American Legion Post 134, which typically donated $2,600 to the Parks District, responded by saying it “will be withholding funds from the park district until such time that everyone rises for the pledge.” Post 134 believes that sitting during the Pledge is “disrespectful to all veterans that have been willing to sacrifice their lives for this country and it is a great dishonor to all servicemen and women who have paid the ultimate sacrifice and died for this country.”

At this point, “Friendly Atheist” Mehta solicited donations from his readers to make up for the shortfall, successfully raising $3,044.06. He sent the Morton Grove Park District a check in this amount on November 12, but as of November 21 the check had not been cashed.

Eventually, Mehta learned that the check would not be cashed because the Parks District “did not want to get involved in a political or religious dispute.”

Mehta then sent the donation to the Morton Grove Library, but during a heated debate on December 19, the library’s trustees voted 5-2 to reject his donation.

At first, the trustees claimed they couldn’t accept the donation because it couldn’t accept money in bad faith. “People gave money to the park district, not the library,” Trustee Barbara Novick said. “Sure I want the money, but I don’t know if it would be ethical to accept money that wasn’t intended for us to begin with.” Trustees Paul Berg and Cathy Peters agreed with Novick’s reasoning, but then Peters went one step further.

The “number two reason,” she said of her motivations behind turning down the donation, is that “they’re a hate group.”

-more-

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/12/24/chicago-area-library-rejects-3000-donation-from-atheist-blogger-because-he-is-a-hate-group/

[PDJane]

1. Good lord and lady........what is wrong with these people??

[mike_c]

2. religious insanity....

eom

[SammyWinstonJack]

4. +1.

[City Lights]

13. +2. nt

[elehhhhna]

5. charity with strings is not charity

and wtf do they think they were fighting for?

[Isoldeblue]

3. Too bad our legislatures can be

bought so easily by the Kochroaches, oil companies and large corporations. We may not agree with the library trustees reasoning, but at least they stand firm in their convictions. Not so with the whores in congress and the senate.

[surrealAmerican]

6. Hate group is as hate group does.

The American Legion is behaving like a hate group here, not Mehta and his donors.

That said, I tend to agree with the library trustees who object because the money was intended for the park district. The money should not be given for a purpose that the donors might not approve.

[PassingFair]

7. I'm one of those donors...

and I'm just *ucking glad I don't live in Morton Grove!

I'm suggesting that the money be given directly to the council member for future campaigns,
or given to the FFRF.

[exboyfil]

11. You are right about not accepting it

if it was collected for another reason. Either it should be returned or a letter be solicited from each of the donors permitting it to be used for this other purpose.

[freshwest]

8. As government is defunded, basic services depend on charity, so more stupidity from all sides.

Charity is no way to run an essential public service. The two groups are claiming through donating or not donating, that they can shut down the libraries as a learning resource for many more people than themselves.

Privatization will led to more of this and more religion or coporate contol. Libraries will censor books on science and politics just as the charter schools have done.

People are being driven to Libertarian solutions to destroy the Commons. We should not be surprised at these idiotic arguments. The costs should not be in the hands of the private sector, that leads to ruin.

The school is the last expenditure upon which America should be willing to economize.

~ Franklin D. Roosevelt

[Marrah_G]

9. I hope he decides to donate to some small community charity in the area.

[lunasun]

12. making a third attempt to donate $3,000 from Morton Grove-area residents,to food pantry in Niles,IL

[lonestarnot]

10. How does 1 guy manage to become a group of more than 1? I want the recipe.

[lunasun]

14. Mehta solicited donations from his readers to make up for the shortfall, successfully raising $3.5K