On September 30th, 2023, Loud Mouth Books opened. Loud Mouth Books is a queer, black, woman-owned, independent bookstore located on East 16th Street in Downtown Indianapolis. It was founded by award-winning author Leah Johnson to highlight both books that have been banned and the writings of minority authors.
The store was opened to combat the Indiana legislature saying that parents and community members could ask schools to remove books from their libraries.
Johnson told WTHR, “It’s not about protecting children. It’s not about making sure that parents have the rights to choose what their children learn. It’s, at its core, about the removal of queer people from public life. The attempt is to make people who are different feel scared or ashamed.”
Loud Mouth Books began with the goal to highlight the voices of those who have been silenced.
Johnson told WTHR, “We specialize in uplifting the voices of marginalized people and marginalized authors. We carry books by and for underrepresented people.”
The store is open from 11-6 every day except Monday when they are closed.