Opinion: Racist threats caused the North Carolina bookstore Liberation Station to close. Here’s why we’re reopening.

North Carolina bookstore Liberation Station closed in Raleigh in 2023 after a series of threats and racial slurs. The owner explains why they’re reopening.

When we opened Liberation Station Bookstore in 2019 as a pop-up in Raleigh, we thought we were simply creating a space where Black children could see themselves reflected on every shelf. We had no idea we were stepping into a fight for the soul of our state. 

From the beginning, we received national recognition and support from families driving across the Southeast to visit us, to fellowships from Village of Wisdom and Invested Faith, to generous gifts from the Carolina Panthers and comedian Katt Williams. But alongside that came anonymous threats, racial slurs, and intimidation meant to push us out. By 2023, as the harassment escalated and our safety became uncertain, we made the painful decision to close our downtown location. 

What our attackers failed to understand was this: you cannot intimidate us into silence. 

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What They Really Feared 

Liberation Station was never just a bookstore. It was evidence that Black children in North Carolina deserved joy. Deserved belonging. Deserved to be seen. 

When children burst into laughter at story time, when parents wept finding books they’d searched a lifetime for, when elders walked through our doors and said, “Finally,” we knew we had built more than a business. We had built a sanctuary. That’s what they feared. 

They feared the joy of Black children running freely through aisles designed for them. The pride of seeing stories where they were the heroes, inventors, and explorers. The community that formed— shoulder to shoulder, heart to heart—around books that told the truth of our beauty. 

In a state still struggling with how it teaches its own history, still draped in Confederate monuments and efforts to suppress honest accounts, Liberation Station dared to center Black childhood as something sacred. And that was too much for some. 

The Cost of Courage 

Shutting our doors wasn’t a retreat—it was protection. But it hurt. We lost more than square footage. We lost a rhythm, a gathering space, a physical home for the dreams of so many children. 

But in that time, something sacred revealed itself: our community cannot be contained by walls. Families kept ordering books online. Teachers built libraries from our curated collections. Fellow bookstore owners, authors, and parents from around the country stood with us.

Most importantly, Black business owners came forward with their own stories. We learned we were not alone. We were part of a lineage—of builders, protectors, dreamers who refused to be  erased. 

Why We’re Coming Back Stronger 

Liberation Station is returning to Southeast Raleigh—not just as a bookstore, but as a declaration. 

We’re building a permanent home at Washington Terrace in the Historic Oakwood district and plan to reopen on Dec. 29, 2025—the fourth day of Kwanzaa. This day, representing Cooperative Economics, is particularly fitting as Liberation Station will reopen as a community-funded space, symbolizing that “We did this together.” 

This space will be 1,000 square feet of radical intention and intergenerational imagination. There will be a Braille affirmation wall so all children, regardless of ability, are affirmed the moment they enter. A podcast studio to amplify silenced voices. An author/media space to nurture storytelling across generations. 

We’ve even filed a proclamation with Governor Stein to designate our grand opening day as Liberation Through Literacy Day—a recognition that would honor not just our reopening, but the broader movement of literacy as liberation that Liberation Station represents. 

Every design decision affirms this truth: Black children are worthy of safety, joy, and celebration. 

This isn’t despite what we’ve faced—it’s because of it. Every threat confirmed the urgency of  what we’re building. Every attempt to silence us only sharpened our vision. 

What This Means for North Carolina 

Our return isn’t just about Liberation Station. It’s about every Black child who’s been told they’re  too much or not enough. It’s about every parent looking for stories that reflect their family’s truth. It’s about every business owner fighting to be seen and sustained. 

This is a love story. A protest. A movement. 

We are showing what it looks like to rise—not just in spite of, but because of adversity. To build not just a business, but a future. One rooted in books, joy, and community. 

The Ripple Effect 

Liberation Station’s reopening is already inspiring bookstores and cultural spaces across the  South to dream bigger. We’ve become a blueprint—a model for what happens when Black  families reclaim our stories and demand spaces where our children are centered. 

Our love for Black children—for their safety, brilliance, and wildest dreams—will always drive us. When we open our doors in the Oakwood District, it will be more than a reopening. It will be a homecoming. A sacred return to the work of making sure every Black child knows: You are seen. You are safe. You belong.