Did you know April is a time to celebrate libraries and librarians and all they do for our communities, John?

April is National School Library Month and just a couple of days ago was National Librarian Day. I mention this because librarians have a special place in my life. My late wife, Emily, was a librarian her entire career. She worked as a librarian at the Charleston Naval Hospital and the Dorn VA Hospital in Columbia. She also established the W.G. Sanders Middle School library in Columbia.

Of course, libraries play an important role in all of our lives. They’re essential institutions in our communities, vital to our children’s education and keeping the public informed. Librarians have dedicated their lives to protecting and encouraging our right to read, but in recent years, their jobs have been made much more challenging due to attacks from the far-right MAGA movement.

Last year, more books were banned in our country’s schools and libraries than any other year those records have been kept. Over 4,000 books were targeted, many of which deal with race or LGBTQ+ issues -- even Harper Lee’s “To Kill a Mockingbird” and Toni Morrison’s “The Bluest Eye.”

Librarians are among our greatest assets. We should be empowering them to do their jobs -- not making it harder for them. John, please join me and sign on your support for librarians and fostering places where we can all read and learn freely.

Thank you,

Jim