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To the editor:

I have grown up here and I love my county. I have been here my whole life and I love seeing the sweet people on the roads wave at me as I go by. I love seeing someone I know over at Restaurant 101 and I love that I will be able to see my sister graduate at the very same place I did very soon.

One thing I love most of all is the Davie County Public Library.

I loved to read as a kid and my favorite thing to do was go pick out a book with my grandma. In high school, it was always there for my last-minute projects when my printer wasn’t and it always had the perfect book for my sources. It means a lot to me.

I do not trust the motives behind the Board of Commissioners going around the Library’s Board of Trustees to appoint a new member and especially someone who is so heavily in Davie’s political atmosphere. In case anyone has forgotten, Brent Ward ran for the Board of Commissioners in 2022 and did not win. He was also formerly on the Mocksville Town Board and also ran for Mayor. This is blatantly a way for the commissioners to gain more political power in the way the library’s policies and procedures are made and executed.

Mark Jones (commissioner) has also shown how far he is willing to go by calling out Davidson-Davie Community College for “Critical Race Theory” which he has no jurisdiction over, was incorrect, and should have maybe done some research about the school before crying wolf. Dr. Hartness did a great job of shutting that down and praising our community college for its integrity and availability to all students. Our community is thankful to have such a wonderful school in our county.

The truth of the matter is our library is not a place for politics. It is a place where anyone, no matter their background, can come and learn what they wish to learn and read what they wish to read. The people of this community deserve that. If parents would like to have control over what their child reads, they have every right to put a book back on the shelf for someone else. There is no need for politics.

The board of commissioners has proven to us that they are willing to undermine and discredit themselves in order to gain more political power within our local government. I encourage anyone who cares and wants to take a stand to email or call our commissioners. You can email Mark Jones at https://www.daviecountync.gov/107/County-Commissioners or call him at 336-416-9587. You can also attend a meeting on June 5 at 6 p.m. at the county building.

Antonia Hutchens

Mocksville