Queer Haven Books, a queer bookstore, coffee shop, and community space, is planning an April opening in Columbia, S.C., the Post and Courier reported.
Owner Baker Rogers, an academic with a focus on gender, sexuality, and religion in the South, has found a 600-square-foot space in the Arcade Mall on Columbia's Main St. There will be titles of all genres and for all ages written by queer authors or telling queer stories, and Queer Haven Books will also sell coffee and tea.
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| Baker Rogers | |
"I think it's more important than ever that we carve out space for people in the queer community to take care of ourselves and, as a bookstore, provide education for those who are interested and willing to learn," Rogers told the Post and Courier. They noted that the bookstore is down the street from the S.C. State House, "where they're having all these horrible hearings right now about trans(gender) health care."
Rogers began raising funds to open the bookstore last May. The build-out will start in March, and Rogers expects to open the following month.
"We found a need, we supported an idea (one that some may call a little crazy), we raised the funds, and now we are ready to open our bricks-and-mortar queer bookstore in South Carolina," wrote Rogers in a Facebook post. "I say 'we,' because there is no way I could have done this alone. We, as a queer community (and our straight allies too), pulled together to carve out a little more space for queer people in this state and region."