From Layoff to Liberation
In September 2024, Tiffany Dockery turned a layoff into liberation. After losing her job at Google, she asked herself a simple question: “At what point are you going to actually do something you believe in?”
Her answer was bold. She cashed out her 401(k) to open Gladys Books & Wine, a new bookstore and wine bar for Black Lesbians in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn.
One year later, the grand opening was nothing short of magic — the shop was overflowing with joy, laughter, and love. Black women filled the space shoulder to shoulder, dancing between bookshelves and celebrating something powerful: community.
As The New York Times reported, Bed-Stuy has seen an exodus of Black residents in recent years, with the neighborhood’s Black population falling from 75% in the 1990s to about 40% in 2023. Gladys Books & Wine stands as an act of resistance — a joyful reclamation of space and culture.
At a time when book bans, anti-queer legislation, and right-wing rhetoric are spreading across the country, Dockery’s bookstore is a radiant counter story: proof that creativity and connection can thrive even in difficult times.
If you’re in Brooklyn, go support Gladys Books & Wine — attend a reading, sip a glass of wine, and dance among the books.
If you’re not nearby, you can order online (check out their collections: Lesbian Stories, Black Queer Futures, and Resistance Reads), or follow them on Instagram and TikTok to keep the energy going.
Because when Black Lesbians create space for each other, the whole world gets a little brighter.
Various shots of Gladys’ Bookstore, a place where stories live on the shelves and community lives in the room.