By: Jordan Meadows
Staff Writer
Liberation Station, North Carolina’s first Black-owned children’s bookstore, has officially reopened its doors in Raleigh.
Now the Miller family–owned bookstore returned before a large and celebratory crowd in a recommitment to its original mission: creating a safe, affirming space where children can see themselves reflected as heroes, leaders, and central figures in the stories they read.
For owner and founder Victoria Scott-Miller, the moment represents what she describes as a “revival,” one made possible by collective care and overwhelming community support.
Liberation Station first opened on Fayetteville Street in downtown Raleigh in 2023 after evolving from a pop-up concept that began in 2019. From its inception, the bookstore stood out as one of the region’s few spaces dedicated exclusively to children’s literature by and about Black authors and characters. Every book sold is written by a Black author and personally reviewed by Scott-Miller and her children. The mission was simple but transformative: to ensure Black children had access to stories in which they were not background figures, but protagonists whose lives, imaginations, and possibilities mattered.
“When I first envisioned Liberation Station, I dreamed of a space where our children could walk in and see themselves. Not as side characters or after-drops, but as heroes with their own stories,” Scott-Miller said.
Victoria Scott-Miller, born and raised in Memphis, Tennessee, she later moved across the country with her husband, Duane, due to U.S. Navy assignments, living in South Carolina and Hawaii before settling in the Triangle almost by chance. Raleigh became home, where the couple raised their two sons and where Scott-Miller’s creative and entrepreneurial work flourished. An accomplished author, documentarian, and cultural leader, she has earned statewide and national recognition, including induction into the Wake County Public School Hall of Fame for Entrepreneurship and a historic commission from the North Carolina Museum of Art.
Despite its early success and national attention from outlets such as CNN, NPR, Good Morning America, and The Washington Post, the original downtown bookstore faced intense hostility shortly after opening. Scott-Miller reported receiving repeated hate messages and threats via phone calls and social media, raising serious concerns about safety for her family, staff, and patrons. In April, less than a year after opening, the decision was made to close the Fayetteville Street location.
“Struggle doesn't get the spotlight today,” Scott-Miller exclaimed.
That pause sparked a wave of public support. After Scott-Miller shared the store’s story online, a GoFundMe campaign quickly gained traction, raising more than $60,000, with nearly half of the funds secured within the first 24 hours. The total eventually surpassed $70,000, fueled by grassroots donations and amplified by social media figures who praised Scott-Miller’s vision and spirit. The funds helped cover relocation costs, inventory, and operating expenses, making the move to Hill Street possible and turning collective outrage into collective action.
The new location sits in Southeast Raleigh, near Saint Augustine’s University, one of the state’s historically Black colleges and universities, and within a neighborhood rich in cultural history and mutual support. Liberation Station now neighbors long-standing community institutions, including a family-run barbershop that has operated for decades, youth and community centers, and nail salons. Scott-Miller has said the area feels safer because of the pride residents take in their history and in one another, describing the move as a homecoming rather than simply a relocation.
“I want my boys to inherit this,” Scott-Miller said. “Even when life tried to break us, we built something beautiful. That a black woman looked at her children and said, "You will grow up in a world that celebrates you and then create that world with her whole hand.”
The reopening intentionally coincided with Kwanzaa, taking place on the fourth day of the celebration and honoring the principle of Ujamaa, or Cooperative Economics, which emphasizes supporting and uplifting Black-owned businesses. Community members, families, and supporters lined up early to welcome Liberation Station back, many describing the moment as emotional and long overdue.
Beyond selling books, Liberation Station has continued to expand its vision of service. Plans for the space include community-centered initiatives such as food and supply pantries, reinforcing Scott-Miller’s belief that literacy, access, and well-being are deeply connected. She has consistently emphasized that children must have access to books in order to develop a love of reading, and that engagement begins when young people feel seen, heard, and empowered to help shape the spaces they occupy.
“Liberation station exists because liberation is not a moment. It is a practice,” Scott-Miller said.
