The new PBS documentary The Librarians, filmed from 2021 to 2025, explores the recent increased governmental and societal attacks on librarians across the United States. Book bans, such as the infamous Krause List in Texas, have ignited a flame in communities on all sides of the political spectrum. The bans largely claim to target ‘inappropriate material’ in order to prevent children from accessing them. However, most of the books governments and school boards label as such merely focus on Black stories and LGBTQ representation.

Carolyn Foote, former Texas librarian and educator, spoke with Temple of Geek about The Librarians and the continued fight for children’s access to diverse books. In 2021, Foote and fellow librarians, including Becky Calzada, founded FReadom Fighters, a grassroots organization rallying against book bans and for intellectual freedom across the board. They also assisted The Librarians documentary team in contacting and communicating with librarians.

FReadom Fighters and “The Librarians”

“Five years ago, we certainly didn’t intend to found anything,” Foote said. “A [Texas] governor and a state representative called out school districts for books in their libraries, and we didn’t want the true story of libraries to get untold.”

As Texas politicians waged war in school and public libraries, the FReadom Fighters gathered supporters online to call attention to the bans and to fight against the increasing attacks. From starting the #FReadom #txledge Twitter takeover to creating their own website, FReadom Fighters grew from a Texas-focused organization to one that spans across the U.S.

“We had no idea how intense or widespread this situation would get,” Foote said. “We just stayed really committed to supporting students in getting access to reading.”

This focus on the students above all else is a sentiment librarians share throughout the documentary. As horrifying as the attacks, verbal and sometimes even physical, on librarians are, those same librarians’ shared care and concern for students’ intellectual freedom is almost more impactful.

Students and Their Librarians

Foote witnessed camaraderie between librarians and students at school board meetings in her own district.

“Students were there,” she said, “including middle school students who came in with stacks of books and were strongly defending their library. It’s why we’re in this. Why librarians are so dedicated to supporting intellectual freedom.”

The support students give back to librarians doesn’t go unnoticed either.

“It supports us more than anything, to see their faces there,” Foot said. “But I’m also sad that they’re having to grow up in this environment where they’re having to fight just to be seen.”

The Librarians shows this teenage fight in the form of a banned book club in Granbury, Texas. High schoolers from this club not only speak to the documentary crew but to their school board, too. The passion in their voices highlights the seriousness of this situation. Book bans don’t just ban books – they run the risk of banning identities found in those books, too.

It’s Not Just a Profession

Increased scrutiny on librarians over the years could understandably make those in the profession feel ambivalent toward their jobs or the fight at large. But a common thread throughout the documentary is librarians standing resolute in their beliefs and their determination to fight for their students despite lost jobs, dangerous threats, or attacks on their reputations. That maybe boils down to the job having far more rewarding and joyful moments than despair.

“I used to say it’s the best job in the school,” Foote said. “The sheer energy of being around kids and how they see the world… I just loved all of that. And I loved being able to empower students, too.”

From letting students in an interior design class help pick out her library’s furniture to hosting slam poetry clubs after school, Foote most enjoyed seeing her students thrive in whatever it was that interested them. Her enthusiasm for their enthusiasm is perhaps best exemplified in the fact that former students who are now in college remain in contact with her. A group of them even read a book with her this past summer.

“You feel a sense of protection around your students,” she said, “a sense of belonging.”

The attacks on librarians, then, are not just attacks on specific people; they’re attacks on communities. But the fight is far from over.

“The Fire of My Determination”

When reflecting on her status as a retired librarian, Foote noted the liberties she has now that she didn’t before.

“I feel some freedom,” she said, “that I can say what I want. There are things I can do that people still in a school or public library can’t do. That stokes the fire of my determination.”

It’s a determination that has carried her and other librarians this far. It’s a fire that will undoubtedly spread through audiences when they watch it displayed on screen.

The Librarians premieres on PBS’s Independent Lens on February 9^th 2026 and will be available to stream on the PBS app.