A Black woman-owned bookstore in Farmers Branch, Texas, has closed its doors after a neighbor allegedly harassed the owner and other businesses in the area. Nia-Tayler Clark said she decided to shut down her bookstore and relocate across the country after obtaining a restraining order against the man.
“It really felt like a dream come true and an answered prayer, and so for it to just be snatched away because of one man has definitely crushed my heart and a lot of other people’s,” Clark said in an interview with CBS News.
The man has been stalking her and her customers since January 2023, she added.
“This guy is a resident at the apartments attached to BLACKLIT,” Clark added. “He is purposely intimidating our employees, our guests. He stands outside and paces our windows. He adjusts his body to make sure we see him and know he’s there. He’s trapped me behind a register. He would not let me leave. Most of it is alcohol-induced. He always comes in with a cup usually. You can tell he has been drinking.”
Clark reported the incidents to police and obtained a temporary restraining order, but officers weren’t able to find the man. Then, she started thinking about the impact the situation was having on her son.
“I started watching him jump. When I started — he started carrying a baseball bat. Like, ‘Ma, is that him? Is that him?’ That’s not a way for a kid,” she told NBC.
The man has also reportedly been to other Black-owned businesses in the area, including an art studio around the corner.
“Comes in, turns our music down, yells, I guess trying to seek attention. Usually has a bottle in his hand. Break dances in the middle of the floor. Just very disruptive,” Destiny Jeffries, the manager of In Living Colour Studio, said to NBC. “We encourage the girls, if you’re here alone, lock the doors.”
BlackLIT celebrated its second anniversary in October. It was originally launched in 2019 as a subscription box service to showcase books by Black authors. In 2020, BlackLIT was ranked as “the second-best subscription box of its kind in 2020” by Oprah Magazine, according to Kera News. The service was so successful that Clark decided to open a brick-and-mortar location in 2022.
Closing the bookstore was difficult, but Clark plans to open another location elsewhere.
“Honestly, it was a big burden to bear, the responsibility of the safety of all these individuals inside of BLACKLIT, myself, my son,” she told CBS News. “I just keep trying to remind myself this is not a goodbye, it’s a see you later. I’m the type of person who likes to finish what I start.”
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