Carter G Woodson Library off 95th and South Halsted is a gathering place for those in the community including seniors and children, amid COVID-19 concerns.

Because so many school-age children are going there, they’ve removed some of the chairs and the toys to limit the crowds. There’s no way to thoroughly clean them as cases of coronavirus increase statewide.

On Change.org, there’s a petition calling on Mayor Lori Lightfoot and Governor J.B, Pritzker to close all Chicago public libraries, especially in light of the governor’s comments about how many people should gather at a time.

President Trump advised even fewer people should congregate in the same space to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

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The union AFSCME represents workers at the libraries. The Council 31 Director of Public Affairs, Anders Lindall released the following statement.


“We are concerned about the public health implications for valued library patrons, library employees and for the broader community. We are in discussions with the city about these very serious concerns."

The petition online written up by employees of the Chicago public libraries is asking the city to guarantee in writing that all workers will be fully compensated during the coronavirus pandemic and won’t be docked for any days.

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Already, the petition has received over 2,600 signatures after it was created early Monday morning.