Buffalo Street Books in Ithaca, N.Y., was the target of a bomb threat that closed Ithaca's Dewitt Mall on Sunday, April 7, 14850.com reported.
The bomb threat, which was made via e-mail and sent to a news agency in a different part of New York, named the Dewitt Mall rather than Buffalo Street Books, but specifically mentioned five people associated with the bookstore. Once the threat was reported, law enforcement evacuated and searched the Dewitt Mall. It was reopened later that afternoon.
In a letter to the bookstore's community and customers, general manager Lisa Swayze noted that "it seems fairly clear that this threat was directed at the bookstore's efforts to welcome and include the LGBTQIA+ community, including our Drag Story Hour."
Swayze said the store reached out to the American Booksellers Association for help, and local and national law enforcement are investigating. While the incident left the Buffalo Street Books team "feeling a bit shaky," they "do not feel in danger at this time," and the team will review its safety procedures for future events.
"If anything," Swayze wrote, "the threat only increases our resolve to continue to do the things that we believe improve lives and spread love through books in our community, including Drag Story Hour. We are grateful to our Drag Queens who volunteer their time to spread literacy and joy so kids can be confident in themselves and become changemakers in their communities. We remain committed to inclusion and equity and to the bookstore being a safe community space for all."
Last Saturday, Mosaics in Provo, Utah, was the target of a bomb threat, and in September, the King's English Bookshop in Salt Lake City cancelled a drag queen storytime due to a pair of bomb threats.