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Anti-Racism: Resources for Children, Teens, & Families

This guide contains information on resources relating to anti-racism, including recommended books for further reading and films.

Resources for Children, Teens, & Families

Children's books about racism and anti-racism are just one way in which we can start conversations with our children about this important topic. Jessica Grose states, "In addition to keeping an open dialogue about racism, a way to raise children who are anti-racist is by making sure your home library has books with black people at the center of their stories" (New York Times, 2020). We have included recommended books in this guide that are part of McKee Library's collection, but encourage you to use the links below to find additional titles that can help you talk about race and encourage a love of literature with diverse characters with your children and teens.  

Featuring stories that include black characters is important.  Picture books can be an excellent way to embrace race and encourage the inclusion of diversity in children's literature. Older children and teens can embrace more difficult topics while engaging in this difficult, yet important conversation. 

Internet Resources

Violence Against Asian Americans: How Do We Support the Children?

The murders of eight people at several spas in the Atlanta area, most of them Asian American and women, mark only the most awful, recent contribution to a year-long spike in anti-Asian American violence in the US. The STOP AAPI Hate received some 3,000 reports of assaults against Asian Americans between March and December 2020 alone, many of them targeting women and seniors. Watch this conversation about the resulting toll on Asian American people and communities and about how communities are pushing back. How are parents, family members, teachers and other caregivers supporting children at a time when physical safety is all but impossible to guarantee? How can the rest of us meaningfully support our Asian American family members, friends and neighbors? Our guests are Dr. Anatasia Kim, professor and cognitive-behavioral therapist to children and families at the Wright Institute, and Manjusha P. Kulkarni, Executive Director of the Asian Pacific Policy and Planning Council.

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abc8oHi-heM

Podcasts

Recommended Titles

Raising White Kids

With a foreword by Tim Wise, Raising White Kids is for families, churches, educators, and communities who want to equip their children to be active and able participants in a society that is becoming one of the most racially diverse in the world while remaining full of racial tensions. For white people who are committed to equity and justice, living in a nation that remains racially unjust and deeply segregated creates unique conundrums. These conundrums begin early in life and impact the racial development of white children in powerful ways. What can we do within our homes, communities and schools? Should we teach our children to be "colorblind"? Or, should we teach them to notice race? What roles do we want to equip them to play in addressing racism when they encounter it? What strategies will help our children learn to function well in a diverse nation? Talking about race means naming the reality of white privilege and hierarchy. How do we talk about race honestly, then, without making our children feel bad about being white? Most importantly, how do we do any of this in age-appropriate ways? While a great deal of public discussion exists in regard to the impact of race and racism on children of color, meaningful dialogue about and resources for understanding the impact of race on white children are woefully absent. Raising White Kids steps into that void.

Sometimes People March

With a spare, inspiring text and gorgeous watercolor illustrations, this is a timeless and important book for activists of all ages. This hardcover picture book is perfect for sharing and for gifting. Sometimes people march to resist injustice, to stand in solidarity, to inspire hope. Throughout American history, one thing remains true: no matter how or why people march, they are powerful because they march together.

Brown Girl Dreaming

National Book Award Winner Jacqueline Woodson, one of today's finest writers, tells the moving story of her childhood in mesmerizing verse. Raised in South Carolina and New York, Woodson always felt halfway home in each place. In vivid poems, she shares what it was like to grow up as an African American in the 1960s and 1970s, living with the remnants of Jim Crow and her growing awareness of the Civil Rights movement. Touching and powerful, each poem is both accessible and emotionally charged, each line a glimpse into a child's soul as she searches for her place in the world. Woodson's eloquent poetry also reflects the joy of finding her voice through writing stories, despite the fact that she struggled with reading as a child. Her love of stories inspired her and stayed with her, creating the first sparks of the gifted writer she was to become. Praise for Jacqueline Woodson: Ms. Woodson writes with a sure understanding of the thoughts of young people, offering a poetic, eloquent narrative that is not simply a story . . . but a mature exploration of grown-up issues and self-discovery.The New York Times Book Review

The Watsons Go to Birmingham--1963

Celebrate the 25th anniversary of this Newbery and Coretta Scott King Honoree about a hilarious family on a road-trip at one of the most important times in America's history. This special edition makes a perfect gift and includes bonus content! Enter the hilarious world of ten-year-old Kenny and his family, the Weird Watsons of Flint, Michigan. There's Momma, Dad, little sister Joetta, and brother Byron, who's thirteen and an "official juvenile delinquent." When Byron gets to be too much trouble, they head South to Birmingham to visit Grandma, the one person who can shape him up. And they'll be in Birmingham during one of the darkest moments in America's history. "Every so often a book becomes a modern classic almost as soon as it arrives on bookshelves. That happened in the mid-'90s when Christopher Paul Curtis released his first book, The Watsons Go to Birmingham--1963." --NPR "One of the best novels EVER." --Jacqueline Woodson, Newbery Honor and National Book Award-winning author of Brown Girl Dreaming

The Hate U Give

8 starred reviews ∙ Goodreads Choice Awards Best of the Best  ∙  William C. Morris Award Winner ∙ National Book Award Longlist ∙ Printz Honor Book ∙ Coretta Scott King Honor Book ∙ #1 New York Times Bestseller! "Absolutely riveting!" --Jason Reynolds "Stunning." --John Green "This story is necessary. This story is important." --Kirkus (starred review) "Heartbreakingly topical." --Publishers Weekly (starred review) "A marvel of verisimilitude." --Booklist (starred review) "A powerful, in-your-face novel." --Horn Book (starred review) Sixteen-year-old Starr Carter moves between two worlds: the poor neighborhood where she lives and the fancy suburban prep school she attends. The uneasy balance between these worlds is shattered when Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend Khalil at the hands of a police officer. Khalil was unarmed. Soon afterward, his death is a national headline. Some are calling him a thug, maybe even a drug dealer and a gangbanger. Protesters are taking to the streets in Khalil's name. Some cops and the local drug lord try to intimidate Starr and her family. What everyone wants to know is: what really went down that night? And the only person alive who can answer that is Starr. But what Starr does--or does not--say could upend her community. It could also endanger her life. And don't miss On the Come Up, Angie Thomas's powerful follow-up to The Hate U Give.

Hammering for Freedom

Born into slavery in Chattanooga, Tennessee, William "Bill" Lewis learned the blacksmith trade as soon as he was old enough to grip a hammer. He proved to be an exceptional blacksmith and earned so much money fixing old tools and creating new ones that he was allowed to keep a little money for himself. With just a few coins in his pocket, Bill set a daring plan in motion: he was determined to free his family. Winner of Lee & Low's New Voices Award, Hammering for Freedom tells the true story of one man's skill, hard work, and resolve to keep his family together.

The Talk

Source: Kanopy