Bombshell records expose political plot to oust rural Georgia librarian over LGBTQ+ book

LaVonnia Moore devoted 15 years to cultivating a library in rural Georgia where every patron felt seen. Yet in a matter of hours in June, the librarian’s career was upended by political outrage and quiet maneuvers among county officials after she included a book with a transgender character in a public display, government records show.

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Newly released records obtained under Georgia’s Open Records Act and shared with The Advocate reveal how local government leaders in Pierce County moved swiftly, and with apparent coordination, to fire Moore from her position at the public library after a small group of conservative activists objected to a children’s book about a transgender child.

The catalyst was When Aidan Became a Brother, an award-winning picture book about a trans boy whose family is expecting another child. A young reader had selected the book for a summer reading display. Moore included it. But its presence in that reading display ignited a modest wave of complaints, according to records, which resulted in her termination.

Among those involved in internal discussions about Moore’s future were District 1 Commissioner Troy Mattox, District 3 Commissioner Randy Dixon, District 4 Commissioner David Lowman, County Manager Raphel Maddox, human resources generalist Elena Ryals, and library board member Lana Blankenship, who also works in the county finance department, the records reveal.

Related: Beloved Georgia librarian fired after child chooses book with transgender character for library display

Complaints about Moore, all from June 18, were forceful, religiously charged, and filled with anti-trans talking points circulated in right-wing circles. In an email to county officials, local resident Crystal Winn, who has a history of anti-LGBTQ+ activism in the area, wrote that the library was promoting “mental manipulation (also known today as mental rape) of children,” accusing Moore of choosing the book, “and no one else.”

Within 90 minutes, Lowman replied, “Thank you. I plan to stop by after lunch today. We will have further discussions on this matter.”

At 11:18 a.m., Jackie Bennett wrote, “Lavonnia needs to be replaced. The trans crap needs to stop. Children have no interest but are being pushed into it by adults that are not happy about themselves.” Lowman offered his agreement, replying at 11:45 a.m., “Yes, sir."

Kim Strickland urged officials, “Do not allow harmful ideology to have access to our children on our watch,” while Christopher Dardis, at 9:25 a.m., declared, “It’s a book my family might have picked up based on the cover. I can’t believe that I have to go into this library on guard… ready to Google every single book they suggest to make sure they aren’t trying to influence my child.”

“Yes, sir. I concur,” Lowman responded at 11:47 a.m. One minute after Dardis emailed Lowman, Dardis sent the same email to Mattox. By the evening, Mattox emailed Dardis back, writing at 6:12 p.m. that the “situation [was] taken care of.”

Behind the scenes, the documents show a flurry of activity throughout the day. Maddox shared a screenshot of a conservative call to action against Moore from social media, and Blankenship replied, “Yes, I would remove her immediately.” That afternoon, at 1:40 p.m., Blankenship texted Maddox, “I just spoke to Jeremy. He wanted support from the board. I told him I supported the decision 100%. They have fired her.”

Blankenship was also engaged in the rapid exchanges with the county’s human resources representative, texting at 8:31 a.m. on June 18, “I am so mad right now,” with an angry emoji. “She needs to go immediately.”

Ryals joined in, replying, “I agree! And it’s a slap in the face for you because you’ve worked very hard to keep the peace and make things work. And now that things have finally calmed down a bit, this blows it back up. And there’s no way she was unaware of that.”

Ryals also circulated screenshots from the Alliance for Faith and Family, the local conservative group leading the charge to purge LGBTQ-themed materials from libraries. “Somebody sent this to Randy,” she wrote, apparently referring to Dixon. Blankenship responded, “Raphael sent it to me. This all started with another book on display. She knows better.”

The internal communications paint a picture of officials responding directly to political pressure rather than to any professional misconduct. Moore, for her part, said she was told she was terminated solely for “poor decision in the line of performance of duty.”

Yet the controversy continued to swell. By June 20, Jeremy Snell, director of the Three Rivers Regional Library System, had already emailed library board members asking if they were interested in calling a special meeting the following Thursday or Friday to discuss “the personnel situation regarding Ms. LaVonnia Moore.” He reminded the board it held the authority to vote on Moore’s reinstatement and noted, “At this point, I have received more communication regarding reinstatement than I did regarding the original issue earlier this week.”

Related: How library workers are defending books, democracy, and queer lives

Records obtained by the Georgia Recorder indicate that about four times as many people contacted county officials supporting Moore’s reinstatement as those who had demanded her firing.

However, Pierce County officials spoke of Moore’s dismissal as a foregone conclusion. Blankenship wrote to Maddox, “I’m not sure what you want me to do? I am against reinstating her,” adding, “I am not sure what good it is going to do.” Followed by, “Thank you for the talk. I will see what I can do to try and help calm the situation.”

On June 24, Maddox texted her, “Good morning, stop[ped] by Pierce Library this morning, we have about 15 customers using our library.” To which Blankship replied, “Nice. Even bad press is good.”

Snell later told the Georgia Recorder that a regular library board meeting was planned for July 15, but due to a lack of quorum, a special-called meeting would likely be scheduled instead.

Moore, who managed the Pierce County public library for five years, maintains she followed policy and simply supported a display created by local families as part of Georgia’s official summer reading theme, “Color Our World.”

“I wasn’t going to tell the kid no,” Moore previously told The Advocate. “I was just happy the kid was reading, happy they were engaging in their library.”

On June 25, Snell received formal notice from Moore’s attorney, Wade Herring, informing him of a wrongful termination lawsuit and instructing officials to preserve all relevant records.

The Georgia Recorder reports that on June 26, Laci Gillis Tippins, a library board member, resigned, citing “recently developing political controversies” and overwhelming professional commitments. “I hope the current political climate cools and all disputes are resolved swiftly so the library may thrive and flourish once again,” she wrote.

Moore has launched a GoFundMe campaign that has raised more than $25,000 to help cover legal expenses and living costs. Herring has suggested her firing may implicate both First Amendment protections and Title VII employment laws. Herring has since declined further interviews, telling The Advocate, “The documents speak for themselves, and I will not be giving any interviews.”

Moore’s case unfolds against the backdrop of a nationwide surge in attempts to remove LGBTQ+ books from schools and public libraries. The American Library Association has reported record-breaking numbers of challenges to LGBTQ+ titles in recent years.

GLAAD condemned Moore’s firing, stating, “No one should lose their job for doing their job.”

On July 8, Snell responded to The Advocate’s request for comment, writing, “In consultation with legal counsel, it is not possible to comment on this matter at this time.”

The Advocate also reached out to Ryals, Mattox, Lowman, Dixon, Maddox, and Blankenship for comment. Ryals has not responded, but an automatic email reply indicated she is out of the office until July 14. The others did not reply.