Books and Sites

On the blog "She Got Guts" the author prescribes "25 Brilliant Books for your feminist toddler" which includes '
Bold Women in Black History' by Vashti Harrison, 'Goodnight Lab' by Chris Ferrie, and 'I am a Warrior Goddess' by Jennifer Adams, among many others.

The Barnes and Noble Children's Book blog, published the article "15 Empowering Middle Grade Novels for Kids Interested in Social Justice" which includes titles like 'Maybe He Just Likes You' by Barbara Dee, 'Amal Unbound' by Aisha Saeed, and 'Me and Marvin Gardens' by Amy Sarig King among many others.

The LoveReading 4 Kids site posted "This Month's Featured Books For 13+ Readers" which includes very recently published books such as 'Burning Sunlight' by Anthea Simmons, 'The Gilded Ones' by Namina Forna, and 'Bone Music' by David Almond, among others.

Hidden Figures was adapted from the book 'Hidden Figures' written by Margot Lee Shetterly. It follows the stories of three Black women working for NASA in the 1960s and their silent fight for equality

Moxie is a Netflix Original Film released in 2021 which is about a girl who decides that she has had enough of her school's tolerance for sexism, racism, and harassment and decides to start an anonymous zine.

Black Panther is a Marvel Movie featuring (the late) Chadwick Boseman as the main character who returns home to take his throne but is met by powerful enemies. The film was directed by Ryan Coogler and receives praise for it's powerful cast and conscious costuming.

Some books to take a closer look at...

LIES WE TELL OURSELVES by Robin Talley

THE HATE U GIVE by Angie Thomas

Lies We Tell Ourselves is set in 1950s Virginia amid desegregation initiatives led by the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People). Sarah, the main character is chosen to attend the all white school in her town alongside 9 other Black students. The story displays her bravery as she goes to school every day and is harassed, spat on, and called derogatory names, and silently fights back. When Linda, the popular girl at school is forced to work in a group project with Sarah, they get to know each other better, and Sarah struggles yet again for the feelings that she begins to have for this girl. Sarah's attraction to women as a Black woman shines a light on the intersectional (race, gender, sexuality) oppressions that she faces and would face if people knew about her and Linda, who feels the same in return. When Chuck, one of the 10 Black students at the school is nearly beat to death because of Linda's actions, Sarah seeks to better understand the dynamic of inherited and taught racism, parental expectations, and love.

This book speaks to the struggles of historical and ongoing oppression against Black students in the North American school systems, and the ways that racism inhibits their empowerment. For example, Sarah is put into all of the lowest level classes because her teachers and principal assume that she is less intelligent because of her race. The most powerful example is the way that Sarah and her Black classmates are treated, making them want to leave school entirely and constantly interrupting their learning, by verbally or physically assaulting them and making it more difficult to be equals.

The Hate U Give is a book that is follows the life of Starr after she is a witness to one of her old friend Khalil's murder at the hands of the police. As a Black girl in predominantly white Williamson high school, she feels torn between the two people she must be to fit in with her neighborhood friends and with the students at school. Over the course of the story, she learns the importance of her voice as city-wide protests against police violence against the Black Community take place. As a witness to the violence, she knows she should speak out against it, but she also knows that there will be consequences.

Starr struggles with the 'otherness' of being Black in her school and eventually snaps at her friend Hailey who sees doesn't see the importance of addressing the racism, the racism that Starr deals with every day. This book also imports a new narrative of gang culture, and references Tupac as a model for understanding the effects of racism, hence the title THUG, part of the full phrase THUG LIFE which stands for 'The hate u give little children F**ks everybody.'

This book shows Starr becoming empowered to use her voice for good, while contrasting the oppression that she feels from society and school. Her school stops her from being her true self because of stereotypes, racialization of sports and language, and because her peers do not understand what she is fighting for.