The Secret Lives of Booksellers and Librarians: True Stories of the Magic of Reading

Foote worked as a high school and district librarian in Austin, Texas, for over 30 years until 2021. She then noticed that there was a marked and concerning increase in the number of calls for certain books—usually featuring LGBTQ+ characters and themes or discussing race—to be removed from libraries. These censorship attempts were made by a small, vocal, and well-organized conservative minority with support from the complicit school administration and posturing politicians. Foote believes that all good libraries are apolitical and that it is the responsibility of parents to supervise their own children’s reading habits without imposing their beliefs on other families.

Foote created a guerilla social media campaign #Freadom to support librarians standing against censorship, which elicited massive and immediate engagement. It subsequently evolved into the hashtag #FReadomFighters with an associated website and page containing constantly updating information and resources. Foote now works as a consultant for public libraries across the US and has received several prestigious national awards for her work fighting censorship. More and more people are becoming aware of the battle against censorship and making a stand, but Foote declares that librarians need support now more than ever.