INDIANAPOLIS–A bomb threat was made to a bookstore in Indianapolis Sunday morning over drag queen story hours.
The CEO of Indy Reads, Ruba Marshood, announced on Instagram that the store would close the rest of Sunday while police conducted an investigation to determine the credibility of the threat.
Marshood says the person who made the threat did it over email anonymously.
“Several Indy Reads employees received an email from an unknown address which indicated that a bomb had been placed at our Fountain Square bookstore and threatened the lives of our team because of our monthly drag story hours,” said Marshood.
Drag queen story hours are usually geared for children aged 3–11. They are hosted by drag queens who read children’s books, and engage in other learning activities in public libraries. Those who are opposed to this say it puts young children at risk of child sexual abuse. Proponents of it say it gives “kids glamorous, positive, and unabashedly queer role models.”
Marshood went on to say that investigators did not detect any threat near the bookstore while investigating the premises.
“All threats to our community are taken seriously and investigated thoroughly,” the statement said. “And, as a safe and healing space for all our neighbors, Indy Reads will always provide programs that align with our core value of inclusivity.”
Indy Reads plans to reopen this Wednesday at 11 a.m.