Letter Template to Protest a Display Ban
This letter template I made for the public fulfills Learning Outcome 5a. I wrote this template in June 2022 so that people could contact City Council members to protest their banning of Pride displays in the children's department of library. I used the Library Bill of Rights and examples of LGBTQ+ discrimination in Utah to argue that the library is necessary as a safe space for children to explore queer identities and issues, as well as a space where these texts are highlighted rather than quietly left on the shelf. I shared the template through social media and encouraged the public to share their own stories and support for both the queer community and the library.
This template and the surrounding situation also fulfills Learning Outcome 5c. I found out about this ban on displays because my former coworkers reached out to me. They were concerned about the actions of the City Council and were afraid of retribution if they were to vocally push back. Even though I had stopped working at this library nine months prior when I moved out of state, they trusted me to sound the alarm and advocate on their behalf. I created social media posts, spoke with journalists, and wrote this template in order to fight for my old library and patrons. I also adjusted my words and actions as the situation developed in order to protect my coworkers, as they asked.