The events following the murder of George Floyd have centered race equity conversations nationally with the utmost urgency. The Books for Good Trouble series addresses this community need by empowering citizens to engage in conversations and learning about equity and social justice and addresses the barriers of service that impact so many. The series centers the messages of BIPOC authors and leaders guiding participants through conversations and promoting literacy by featuring titles that represent BIPOC community.

BFGT centers LGBTQ+ and BIPOC voices for the purpose of sharing lived experiences. SDPL hosted community dialogues that explored themes such as immigration, racism, identity, police brutality, representation, and cultural contributions. Participants shared thoughts that connected to their experiences and left with knowledge and tools to continue the conversations. Key partners included educators, activists and local BIPOC authors. The companion podcast provided evergreen content for users to explore further.

BFGT raised awareness about social justice in a trusted space. 91% of participants were aware of more issues in their community, 93% felt more confident about becoming involved in community and 99% learned something by participating in the program. BFGT deepened community partnerships with San Diego Pride and San Diego Juvenile Court Schools. It has connected more BIPOC authors to the library and expanded social justice collections. The podcast has been used for education purposes in San Diego Community College.