Growing up as a queer kid in the U.K. in the 90s, I found refuge in books, preferring their company to the harsh realities of the outside world. My imagination was immense, colorful and greedy, and I was always on the hunt for something to satisfy my voracious literary appetite.

English was my favorite subject at school so much so that I would write and illustrate stories for my English teacher on a weekly basis; tales of murderous werewolves were a fave. Reading about and crafting worlds that were so different from my own served as the escape I needed from reality. And the library was crucial to facilitating this escape.

I loved reading about bloodthirsty supernatural creatures as an 8-year-old. But the older I got and the more confused I became about my queerness, the more I craved reading material that was a bit more, well, relatable. But books about and for young queer people didnt really exist 30 years ago, in any part of the world.

Fortunately, there are more now than ever before and for free at your local library. Queer kids today have a wealth of options, like Meredith Russos joyful transgender romance If I Was Your Girl and Juno Dawsons fun yet incredibly informative This Book Is Gay. If books like these were available when I was processing my queerness, it would have made me feel less alone and Id need a lot less therapy now.

Despite being all grown-up (kind of) and more comfortable with my identity, I still want to read books like these, books that discuss our authentic selves. Living in the U.K., I can access them easily. But unfortunately, this is not the case in other parts of the world deemed equally as progressive.

The current bans on queer books in the U.S. are mostly orchestrated by parent-led groups and far-right activists who believe that conversations about queerness should not exist in schools. Incidentally, Russos and Dawsons books have been banned in multiple school libraries in America.

Fortunately, librarians all over the U.S. are fighting back, with many viewing their job as inherently political. Theyre doing everything they can to protect and advocate for queer people, even if it costs them their jobs and mental health.

I had threatening emails and phone calls, one of which mentioned my wife by name, Gavin Downing, a former librarian at Cedar Heights Middle School in Covington, Washington, tells me. After adding some queer books to his librarys shelves in early 2022, three were removed by the schools principal when a student reportedly complained of one Jack of Hearts (and Other Parts) containing sexually explicit content.

What followed was a turbulent time for Downing. His efforts gained national attention , and the three books were subjected to review by the school board. After he made it clear that protocol hadnt been followed in the removal of the books, the challenge was dropped and they were discreetly returned to shelves. The process was a long one, but Downing was steadfast in his belief that students should have access to books that discuss queerness. I was prepared to defend it, he says. Even more than I was before.

Things had become too much at Cedar Heights, and Downing tells me that he felt there was no choice but to leave. I had panic attacks about going to work, he says. Id wake up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat and wouldnt be able to get back to sleep. With the help of his union, he was able to get out and was reassigned to another school. While Downing doesnt identify as queer, many of his family members and friends do including his wife. Thats been a factor in his quest to elevate the voices of people who have been historically marginalized and excluded.

Despite Downings experience at Cedar Heights being a distressing one, it was illuminating. Its changed me so much. I went from quietly supporting my union and Washington Library Association to being an active participant in both, he says, referring to a professional organization for librarians. Downing also ran for a position on his local school board a role that would have afforded him greater powers in opposing the censorship of queer books. He didnt win, but his determination to fight has only grown.

Librarians who care about making queer kids feel seen are hyperaware of the opposition to valuable reading material. And theyre fighting the good fight online and offline.

Storm Kopitsch and her colleague Annessa Dimkoff, who work at Michigans Fowlerville District Library, run its popular TikTok account . They lead fun initiatives such as Gilmore Girls themed reading challenges for their 122,000 followers but behind the scenes, theyre doing more serious work to advocate for local queer people.

Ive added rainbow reads stickers to LGBTQ+ teen books, Kopitsch tells me. This came about because we had teens that were desperate for books and kept asking whether a book was queer or not.