CHICOPEE, Mass. - Proposed legislation by several Massachusetts state senators, including Hampden, Hampshire and Worcester state Sen. Jake Oliveira, would prevent libraries from restricting certain material.

"Really trying to target those xenophobic attempts to try to limit materials, not just in our schools, but public libraries in general," Oliveira said.

Oliveira said more than 2,500 books have been attempted to be banned across the country, many of which include topics relating to people of color as well as the LGBTQ+ community.

He said there have been attempts by some in Massachusetts, including recently in Ludlow schools where some parents backed a removal policy because they were concerned about content their children would have access too. His new bill would have consequences for libraries that block access.

"What our bills does is it actually it asks library trustees, and there's a funding piece tied to it tying it to state funding, that says that you need to adopt the American Library Association standards or their bill of rights within your local community in order to receive state funding," Oliveira said.

Oliveira said libraries and schools need to be areas where children and adults can have freedom of thought as well as being reflected in the books that they consume.

"In our public libraries themselves they're centers where the librarians themselves, those that have a lot of training through the American Library Association and who have gotten degrees in library science, are the experts in making sure that the materials within our schools and our public libraries are age appropriate, but also reflect the cultural diversity that we enjoy here in Massachusetts," he said.

Oliveira said he hopes to work on the language of the bill as it goes through the committee process in the next couple of months before it goes to the floor of the legislature.