Mychal Threets announced in an Instagram video that he is resigning from his job as a librarian at the Solano County Public Library in California to work on his mental health.
“Dear Solano County Library, I just want to say thank you,” Threets said in the video posted Friday. “Thank you for raising me as a home-schooled library kid. This is a place where I’ve always felt safe, where I’ve always felt where I belong.”
Threets, 33, is known for his viral TikTok videos, where he spreads “library joy.” His joy is so well known that the American Library Association honored Threets with the I Love My Librarian Award for Outstanding Library Service.
“Library joy in its simplest form is just the joy of the library. What that means is just what I try to and what I hope all library workers embody. It is [fostering that sense of] belonging,” Threets told HuffPost last month. “I keep on saying that the library is for everybody: library kids, library grown-ups, mentally ill, unhoused. I love telling people that they don’t have to leave their anxiety, depression or PTSD outside the library. There’s no sign that says you can’t bring your anxiety in.”
Threets said in his resignation video that his last day at the library is March 1, but he hopes to continue to fight for literacy and lobbying in Congress for library funding. Amid schools and libraries across the nation banning books, fighting for someone’s right to read is more important than ever.
Last month, Threets posted on TikTok “a mental health check” video and said he had a “mental health breakdown” and was having panic attacks.
The video was posted about a week after Threets announced on social media that PBS offered him the role of resident librarian for a social media series. Threets said the role would include him offering book suggestions, talking about literacy, and, of course, spreading library joy. In a comment to HuffPost, PBS confirmed Threets will keep his new job opportunity with the company.