Jake Epstein
Fri, December 23, 2022
Books are displayed at the Patmos Library on August 11, 2022 in Jamestown, Michigan
Joshua Lott/The Washington Post via Getty Images
A Michigan librarian ripped into conservatives who have "threatened" and "cursed at" her.
Her comments came days after the library was forced to close early for "staff safety concerns."
Locals voted earlier this year to defund the Patmos Library over books with LGBTQ themes.
A furious western Michigan librarian is fed up with conservatives in her small town who she says threatened and harassed her over books with LGBTQ themes.
The woman, who works at Patmos Library in Jamestown Township, called out people in the audience at the library's board of trustees meeting earlier this week after the library was forced to close days earlier because of safety concerns.
"I'm tired and I'm tired of all of you," the employee said at the meeting, which was shared in a Tik Tok video. She added that she's been working five or six days a week, hasn't been able to hire anyone, and regrets moving to the town in the first place.
The librarian said locals have baselessly accused her of "sexualizing" and "grooming" children.
"We broke last week — we have been threatened again. I have been cursed on the phone. I have been threatened on the phone.
"How dare you people?" she continued. "You don't know me. You don't know anything about me."
Her comments at Monday's board meeting came after the library announced on Facebook that it was shutting down early on December 12 because of "staff safety concerns."
The librarian said her grandchildren can read the threats and insults made against her.
"I'm Catholic. I'm Christian. I'm everything you are," she shouted. "I was taught to love your neighbor as you love yourself, no matter what they're like — that God loves all of us.
"That's not what I hear every day," she continued. "Not from you."
During the meeting, some people speculated without evidence that the library was lying about threats against its staff, local station Fox 17 reported. Other residents, however, backed the library's decision to close to keep employees safe.
"It doesn't matter if a threat is real or perceived, the safety of the library employees is imperative to keep the library open," one person said at the meeting, according to Fox 17. "We all have the right to feel safe in our homes, our communities, and to know that there are community members who do not feel safe here is disheartening."
The librarian said the latest harassment was "one threat too many, one accusation too many."
"And all we do is come in here to serve you, day after day after day," she added.
The Patmos Library and the Ottawa County Sheriff's Office didn't immediately respond to Insider's requests for comment.
Earlier this year, Jamestown Township voted to defund the Patmos Library, the culmination of a months-long coordinated effort by right-leaning residents to punish the library over the LGBTQ-themed books.
Fox 17 reported that the library was slated to close in September 2024, but $100,000 in donations will allow it to remain open for a few more months. It'll now close in January 2025.
Read the original article on Insider
A Michigan librarian ripped into conservatives who have "threatened" and "cursed at" her.
Her comments came days after the library was forced to close early for "staff safety concerns."
Locals voted earlier this year to defund the Patmos Library over books with LGBTQ themes.
A furious western Michigan librarian is fed up with conservatives in her small town who she says threatened and harassed her over books with LGBTQ themes.
The woman, who works at Patmos Library in Jamestown Township, called out people in the audience at the library's board of trustees meeting earlier this week after the library was forced to close days earlier because of safety concerns.
"I'm tired and I'm tired of all of you," the employee said at the meeting, which was shared in a Tik Tok video. She added that she's been working five or six days a week, hasn't been able to hire anyone, and regrets moving to the town in the first place.
The librarian said locals have baselessly accused her of "sexualizing" and "grooming" children.
"We broke last week — we have been threatened again. I have been cursed on the phone. I have been threatened on the phone.
"How dare you people?" she continued. "You don't know me. You don't know anything about me."
Her comments at Monday's board meeting came after the library announced on Facebook that it was shutting down early on December 12 because of "staff safety concerns."
The librarian said her grandchildren can read the threats and insults made against her.
"I'm Catholic. I'm Christian. I'm everything you are," she shouted. "I was taught to love your neighbor as you love yourself, no matter what they're like — that God loves all of us.
"That's not what I hear every day," she continued. "Not from you."
During the meeting, some people speculated without evidence that the library was lying about threats against its staff, local station Fox 17 reported. Other residents, however, backed the library's decision to close to keep employees safe.
"It doesn't matter if a threat is real or perceived, the safety of the library employees is imperative to keep the library open," one person said at the meeting, according to Fox 17. "We all have the right to feel safe in our homes, our communities, and to know that there are community members who do not feel safe here is disheartening."
The librarian said the latest harassment was "one threat too many, one accusation too many."
"And all we do is come in here to serve you, day after day after day," she added.
The Patmos Library and the Ottawa County Sheriff's Office didn't immediately respond to Insider's requests for comment.
Earlier this year, Jamestown Township voted to defund the Patmos Library, the culmination of a months-long coordinated effort by right-leaning residents to punish the library over the LGBTQ-themed books.
Fox 17 reported that the library was slated to close in September 2024, but $100,000 in donations will allow it to remain open for a few more months. It'll now close in January 2025.
Read the original article on Insider
No comments:
Post a Comment