Owners Of LGBTQ Free Library In Waltham Say Books Stolen Again

Waltham MA

08 March, 2022

1:09 PM

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WALTHAM, MA — The owners of an LGBTQ-friendly free library in Waltham said their books have been stolen for the third time in less than a month, reported NBC 10. Surveillance footage shows a man stealing multiple titles from the Little Queer Library on Sunday. Petrie and Katie Cohen, who built the library on their front lawn in 2020, believe it is being targeted for its LGBTQ titles, especially in light of the ongoing Waltham School Committee debate over whether to ban two books with LGBTQ themes. "I thought we were done with this, but earlier this morning he came back again and cleared out our library," wrote the Cohens on their social media. "This is the third time this has happened. My heart hurts that someone who spend so much time and energy on trying to silence us and take away light and hope for people who need it." In a positive update on Tuesday, the Cohens said some of the missing books were returned by a Waltham police detective, who was able to confront the man who took them. "At this time, I am choosing not to share anymore details because 1) the police are still looking into things and we don't have the full story, and 2) I would like to extend kindness and understanding to the person in question, even if it was not extended to us," they wrote. "I urge you to please be kind to this person, in the comments and in real life. We don't know his story, and he has done the right thing in returning the books." Since the first incident, the library received hundreds of donations and raised close to $7,000 dollars to continue its mission.