RALEIGH, N.C. — The first Black-owned children’s bookstore in North Carolina is coming to downtown Raleigh this summer. 

Liberation Station Bookstore will open its physical store on Juneteenth, Monday, June 19, at 208 Fayetteville St. 

What You Need To Know

  •  Liberation Station will be the state's first Black-owned children's bookstore

  •  It has existed as a pop-up since 2019

  •  The brick-and-mortar store will open on Juneteenth

Victoria Scott-Miller, the owner, says Liberation Station started as a pop-up in 2019 when the oldest of her two sons couldn’t find many books featuring Black children in their local big box store. 

"We were filling a need for our children and it just so happened to fill a need for the community," Scott-Miller said. 

She said data from the Cooperative Children’s Book Center shows animals are represented in 29% of kids books and children of color are only represented in 12% of published children’s books. 

The space is empty now, but will feature a wall full of books that have been banned or removed from schools.

Scott-Miller is excited for her family’s dream to come alive on Juneteenth.

“This will be like a candy store for them," Scott-Miller said. "They get to choose and these narratives are not going to be based in trauma. They will be based in hope and healing and excitement and imagination and innovation."

They are fundraising right now ahead of the opening on Juneteenth.