What the board reversed
The Durham County Board of Commissioners ordered an immediate reversal Friday morning after Durham County Public Library Director Dana Conners instructed all branch staff to remove every LGBTQ+ display effective Thursday afternoon. Conners, who took over the director role in January, cited federal executive orders rejecting what she called "illegal" diversity, equity and inclusion actions in the workplace.
In her email to staff, Conners framed the removal as protective. "If we put that at risk right now, we risk losing the ability to provide that safety at all," she wrote. The decision was hers alone.
How commissioners found out
County officials learned of the order not through any internal channel but through a Reddit post late Thursday evening. The post described a dismal atmosphere as employees stripped shelves of Pride materials in front of patrons, with LGBTQ+ workers feeling alienated and betrayed.
County spokesperson Deborah Craig-Ray said the directive was not issued by the Board of County Commissioners, the County Manager, or the County Attorney, and that no board policy prohibits Pride Month displays or LGBTQ-related materials. While the County Attorney's Office periodically sends departments legal updates on federal and executive actions, Craig-Ray said none of those updates directed the removal of Pride Month displays.
What comes next
The reversal lands a year after the Board of Commissioners pulled county funding from Durham's Pride Month parade under pressure from the Trump administration's threats to withhold federal dollars from local governments over DEI programs. That earlier decision was board-directed. This week's removal was not, and the board moved to undo it within hours of learning it had happened.
Before the reversal was announced, the LGBTQ Center of Durham urged the county to reinstate the displays and thanked library workers for making branches a vital gathering space for queer and trans residents. Conners did not respond to requests for comment Friday.