Loudmouth Books, which emphasizes banned books, opened over the weekend--appropriately as Banned Books Week began--at 212 E. 16th St. in Indianapolis, Ind. IndyStar reported that author Leah Johnson "wasn't planning on opening a bookstore this year. Sure, owning her own bookstore was a dream she'd had for a long time as a book lover and writer, but she was too busy writing a book a year and speaking at events all over the country. Then came the 2023 legislative session."
Johnson's mother, State Rep. Renee Pack (D.-Indianapolis), who has been fighting against legislation to ban books and gender-affirming care in the Indiana Statehouse, was an inspiration. Johnson said issues targeting the LGBTQ+ community are personal for her as a Black, queer author. Her YA novel You Should See Me in a Crown was challenged for so-called "obscene" content in Oklahoma last year.
She felt compelled to provide a space in Indianapolis where people could access books telling the stories of queer authors and authors of color, noting: "I just felt like my hands were tied. I just knew with the amount of bans that we were facing, the number of challenges that we were dealing with, that if I was going to do this, then this was the time to do it."
Loudmouth Books "is decorated in bold colors and tons of sparkles in a style she describes as 'eclectic maximalism,' " IndyStar wrote, adding: "There are disco balls galore hanging from the ceiling and nestled on shelves, a bright pink neon sign that says 'READ DANGEROUSLY' on the wall behind the counter and pride flags everywhere. Stacks and stacks of books with colorful covers--books by Black authors, LGBTQ+ authors and authors of color--adorn every surface."
Johnson is selling books that have been banned by government and school systems. "I was angry," Johnson said. "I decided the same laws that allow you to deny service to queer people, on the basis of whatever your beliefs are, are the same laws that allow me to sell these stories that you all are so afraid of."
In an Instagram post just before opening, Johnson noted: "It's a little late, but it's sort of like Christmas Eve over here, all anticipation and nerves. Tomorrow, this bookstore that I have poured so much of my heart into will be open to the public for the first time. But Loudmouth isn't just mine. It's yours. It's ours. It’s for every one of us who have watched our books removed from shelves and for everyone who has had our identities called 'indecent' and 'obscene' at school board meetings and on statehouse floors. I love you. I love us. See you at the bookstore."