Merely writing “Go Ice” on social media forced a Chicago area teacher into administrative leave last week. Also last week, Illinois initiated a civil rights complaint against a property owner just for tipping off the federal government that his apartment building was being taken over by illegal alien gang members. Illinois is a leader in the far left’s hostility to free speech, says Wirepoints’ Mark Glennon in the interview. “It cant get more serious than this,” Glennon says, and Illinois has sponsored unconstitutional chilling of free speech “up the wazoo” for any teachers, landlords and others who dare to consider saying what they believe.
The train of abuses in Illinois when it comes to free speech — democracy’s essential, bedrock right — is now long. See the list below. In addition, Illinois recently, Illinois denied registration rights to a nonprofit group of Democrats who disagree with their party’s position on transgender issues but use the word “Democrat” in their name. And Illinois’ new Clean Slate Law, that bars public access to certain criminal court records, is a nearly certain First Amendment lawsuit win for the right plaintiff.
Most alarming, perhaps, is the silence of legacy media on all of this. Journalists traditionally formed the bulwark defending the First Amendment. Those days are gone.
Hear Glennon’s interview from WLS Ray Stevens Show here.
UPDATE 1/29/26: Another one was reported Wednesday. A Cook County judge has been removed from the bench for publishing an opinion column stating standard criticisms of the far left. Judge James R. Brown wrote the column after he retired, and before he was returned to the bench to fill temporary vacancies in Cook County.
Earlier Wirepoints stories on Illinois’ hostility to First Amendment free speech rights:
- Lawsuit Filed To Declare Illinois’ Falsely Labeled ‘Worker Freedom Of Speech Act’ Unconstitutional
- Illinois thumbs nose again at free speech rights: no discussing politics or religion at employee meetings
- Illinois’ Stupidest Bill of the Year Signed Into Law – the Falsely Labeled, Unconstitutional ‘Worker Freedom of Speech Act’
- Illinois Attorney General cries uncle in free speech case but tries to hide it
- Let The Government Censor Away Through Agents It Controls, Say Kwame Raoul And Cabal Of A.G.s To U.S. Supreme Court
- Scorching court opinion posted: Federal judge ridicules ‘stupid’ Illinois abortion ‘misinformation’ law and Attorney General Raoul
- Illinois ‘anti-doxing’ bill becomes law – the latest attack on free speech
- Illinois delegated control over its ‘ban on book bans’ to an organization now run by a self-described Marxist
- Illinois’ new ban on book bans is an empty and hypocritical stunt
- Woke cancel culture’s new low: Chicago native Glenn Loury’s podcast banned by YouTube as ‘hate speech’
- Gov. JB Pritzker’s new assault on free speech
- Response by Illinois progressives to Friday’s Supreme Court rulings was shameful, irresponsible and dishonest
- Hypocrisy unbridled as Pritzker claims opposition to ‘book banning’ will make Illinois a destination state
- Universities better get ahead of surging anti-woke backlash. The University of Illinois should go first.
- Chicago Tribune and Sun-Times suppress news of national scandals
- Two ‘Compelled Speech’ Matters Beg For Litigation In Illinois
- Chicago Fed’s Woke Enemy Of Free Speech Heading For Promotion To Federal Reserve Board
- Money talks: Donors show the path to restoring freedom of thought and speech in higher education
- The Illinois Attorney General Should Join This Historic, Critical Lawsuit
- Tech Censorship Hits Illinois: Center Square Tweets Blocked
- Illinois Senators Durbin and Duckworth Are Among The Book Burners Happy With Big Tech Censorship
- The Capitol Building, Illinois And The Suppression Of Political Dissent
- An important lesson from Chicago on confronting the enemies of free speech
- Buzz Off, Attorney General Garland. Furious School Parents Will Not Be Silenced
- The battle between free speech and censorship takes center stage in Illinois and across the country – Podcast
- On This Independence Day, Commit Never to Kneel Before the Tyranny
With $162 billion more from taxpayers, couldn’t you deliver a few bond upgrades, too
Audio and summary 
A largely unasked question is becoming glaring: Is Illinois doing all it should to use artificial intelligence to make government cost less and work better? So far, the evidence says no.
Free speech is not free.
Why are there so few views on all the interviews with Mark? People need to see/hear this stuff!
More than likely, the administration in West Chicago looks at the demographics of this school district and decides that the course of action to take is punitive against the instructor. Meanwhile, in a heavily Latino area, the course of action to take against an administrator that mocked the assassination of Charlie Kirk is to get shuffled quietly back into the deck and keeps a high paying position at Hale school. We don’t hate the government of IL enough.
Look no further than Jack Smith and how he trashed the First Amendment to do Biden and Garlands bidding to attack political opponents. Members of Congress demanded that if Smith were ever put on the federal payroll again, he be mandated to take remedial course work on the First Amendment. The Democrats have a long history of First Amendment abuse and do not seem to care. It’s all about their political agenda, and screw the Constitution and Bill of Rights. IL Democrats fit right in to the fraud.
I don’t call this place Hellinois for nothing.
Free Speech is the backbone of America; it is what makes our country great. Like it or not, we have to listen to each other’s trash talk. Any kind of censorship for any reason is wrong.
Democrats despise the Constitution as white supremacist trash.
The only way they can win is if opposing voices are silenced by the government.