A colorful graphic of a young Black student seeing their identity reflected in a book.

Opinion

New Narratives Are Necessary for True Diversity in Children’s Books

Two sisters who advocate for diversity in books explain how important it is for Black children to experience stories that are inspiring and fun–and not tied to race.

February 18, 2022

Ekene Okolo

Co-founder, Black in PUSD

Nene Okolo

Co-founder, Black in PUSD

Ekene Okolo

Co-founder, Black in PUSD

Nene Okolo

Co-founder, Black in PUSD

Imagine you’re in kindergarten again and are facing the daunting task of finding the perfect picture book during your class trip to the library. You search seemingly endless shelves of books decorated with unicorns, dragons, and dinosaurs before you spot a child on a cover. Then another. And another.

As your eyes scan the countless book covers, you realize none of the children on them look like you.

Years pass, and while you have continually tried to find pieces of yourself within the storylines of white characters, you still yearn to find a book that truly represents you. But each time you venture to the library and browse the book covers, you continue to be met with the same realization: none of the children look like you.

For us, that pattern was finally broken when we were in the first grade and fourth grade and came across Meet Addy: An American Girl. Eager to learn more about the Black girl on the cover, we flipped to the description on the back. A wave of disappointment hit when one word caught our eyes: slave.

This was our reality—one many Black children share—when it came to finding books that center Black characters. It was hard enough to find an interesting novel with a Black protagonist, but it became even more difficult to escape negative narratives.

Books about Black people often fall under three categories: slavery, the civil rights movement, and “gritty, contemporary” stories about children growing up in struggling families or teens dealing with violence, says Kathleen T. Horning, director of the Cooperative Children’s Book Center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. As elementary schoolers, reading those types of stories made us question whether they were the only Black narratives worth sharing. We longed to connect with a larger catalog of Black characters.

Ekene and Nene Okolo are co-founders of Black in PUSD, a student-led initiative to advocate for racial equity in schools. Ekene (left) is a senior at Westview High School in San Diego and is interested in pursuing a career in health policy and medicine. Nene (right) is a third-year student at Johns Hopkins University studying public health while on the pre-medical track.

What about Black adventurers, artists, or detectives? Why can’t books with Black protagonists feature the diverse storylines that books with white protagonists include? Although the number of Black book characters has increased over the years, only 12% of the books published in the U.S. in 2019 were about Black or African primary characters, subjects or settings, according to the Cooperative Children’s Book Center.

Such limited options offer a narrow point of view that deeply impact Black readers. When reciting the popular motto “representation matters,” we often fail to consider what comprehensive representation looks like and its positive effects on readers. The many children's books that address slavery or racism are technically representation; however, they convey an underlying message that Black stories can only be reduced to these themes and no others. They fuel the narrative that Black people are defined by their struggles and that our triumphs, zeal, and quirks are not worth reading about.

When those narratives are written from perspectives that lack cultural authenticity, they contribute to stereotypes and harmful perceptions of Black people. As young Black women who deal with race-related issues quite often, we understand the necessity for creating books with Black struggles at the forefront. These stories showcase our collective ability to overcome hardship, and they have the potential to empower youth through a greater understanding of America’s roots. However, there is a correlation between positive representation and high self-esteem, which underscores the importance of providing Black children with a broader selection of titles that help them find empowerment in aspects of life beyond hardship.

“Black boys and girls are superheroes, explorers, and astronauts—everything our white peers have gotten to be.”

Ekene & Nene Okolo

Co-founders, Black in PUSD

To truly diversify children’s books, we must also consider that the stories we present don’t always have to acknowledge race. Black boys and girls are superheroes, explorers, and astronauts—everything our white peers have gotten to be.

Labeling our characters as Black superheroes, Black explorers, or Black astronauts when the race of the protagonist isn’t integral to the overall storyline creates the impression that these depictions of Black people are anomalies. In the same way that a white protagonist’s race is not highlighted in front of their role, Black protagonists also don’t need it—we can just be superheroes, explorers, and astronauts.

Recognizing the need for books in which Black characters can be more than just their race, our initiative, Black in PUSD (Poway Unified School District in San Diego, California), worked to drive change. We hosted a virtual fundraiser registered under the Presidential Inaugural Committee’s National Day of Service to supply diverse children’s books in our district’s elementary and middle school libraries in 2021. Thanks to these efforts, we were able to donate 590 books and were overjoyed to see children’s smiles as they found themselves on every page.

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While we were able to empower Black youth through the hundreds of stories we donated, all it takes is one book. One book during circle time starring a coily-haired, bright-eyed Black girl as she solves neighborhood mysteries or an imaginative Black boy who dreams of becoming a poet—these are the narratives that inspire Black children and cultivate positive self-image.

The stories we present to our youth are important, making the difference between low self-esteem and confidence. Let’s share these stories of greatness with children today, so that tomorrow they can write their own.

Ethnic Studies Champions

In addition to their work to diversify school library books, Ekene and Nene Okolo have also led efforts to diversify curricula. As with books, curricula and lessons often center European and white stories and perspectives. To address that, the sisters advocated for ethnic studies courses now offered in their district. They made this video to clarify the goals of ethnic studies and ethnic literature while addressing criticisms that these courses have received.

What is Ethnic Studies?

View transcript

What is ethnic studies? In light of recent events in the community, we decided to address some public concerns regarding the implementation of Ethnic Studies and ethnic literature courses in the Poway Unified School District.

First, let's start off with defining Ethnic Studies. Northern Arizona University defines Ethnic Studies as the interdisciplinary study of race and ethnicity, as understood through the perspectives of major underrepresented racial groups in the United States.

The four foundational disciplines of ethnic studies are African-American Studies, Asian-American Studies, Chicano Latino Studies and Native American and Indigenous Studies. The PUSD Ethnic Studies course will focus on these four disciplines and also examine other racialized groups in America.

Now, it's time to address some of the criticism that ethnic studies has received.

Ethnic Studies is teaching students to believe America is a racist country. As stated in the definition, the goal of Ethnic Studies is to provide new perspectives on history by examining impacts of race and ethnicity in society, as well as examining the history of various ethnic groups through ethnic studies. Students are exposed to historical implications of American institutions, which have led to various disparities we see across racial and ethnic groups today.

It is no secret that America has had a history of imposing policies and practices which have targeted and harmed communities of color. It is imperative that we as a society not only address what has happened in the past, but understand how discriminatory institutions still persist today in various ways, whether implicit or explicit.

In studying Ethnic Studies, students can gain a cross-cultural understanding of America and appreciate the diversity while simultaneously recognizing the racial disparities that still exist. Studying real historical events and applying them to present day society promotes critical thinking and to not be seen as indoctrination. It is simply education.

Ethnic Studies makes white students feel guilty about their race. Let's be very clear: the implementation of Ethnic Studies is not meant to make white students feel guilty about their race.

As mentioned before, Ethnic Studies examines various racial and ethnic groups while taking into account the historical practices that have harmed and continue to harm these groups. The root of these discriminatory practices is white supremacy.

White supremacy is defined by Merriam-Webster as the social, economic and political systems that collectively enable white people to maintain power over people of other races. Learning about white supremacy is not meant to villainize white students. It is simply a reality that must be addressed. Understanding the structural and socioeconomic power that white Americans have held for hundreds of years gives context to today's racial inequity, which ultimately allows us to work towards solutions.

Ethnic Studies is preferential treatment based on race. In The typical US K-12 curriculum, history and social science courses rarely teach about the history of minoritized racial and ethnic groups in America. A study by the National Museum of African-American History and Culture found that generally, only one to two lessons for eight to nine percent of total class time is devoted to Black history in U.S. history classrooms. In another study by Professor Christine Sleeter, she reviewed California's history and social studies framework and found that of the nearly 100 Americans recommended to be studied, 77 percent were white, 18 percent were African-American, 40 percent were Native American, one percent were Latino and none were Asian-American.

It is clear that history classes fail to cover accurate and substantial content related to various ethnic groups. If they do, they're usually limited and oftentimes portray groups in stereotypical ways. Not only that, but dialogue on these groups is often given from a Eurocentric perspective, which fails to accurately represent them.

In literature, stories are often told from the viewpoint of white authors, even when they deal with topics like racism that directly affect minorities. Other narratives that aren't centered on racism rarely feature diverse authors or characters, and this lack of representation in literature is harmful to students. Ethnic literature aims to provide that representation and expose students to a wide variety of societal perspectives. The existence of Ethnic Studies and ethnic literature is not preferential treatment toward students of color, but rather a means to finally recognize the cultural relevance of these groups in history and today in society.

Examining everything through the lens of race is not the solution. Though people claim that nowadays everything has to be about race, it would be dishonest to ignore the real implications that race has on the way people are treated in society.

17% of Native Americans. 25% of Asian-Americans, 31% of Latinos, and 45% percent of African-Americans report experiencing discrimination when trying to rent or buy housing. Black, American Indian, and Alaska Native women are two to three times more likely to die from pregnancy complications. Black students are three times more likely than white students to be suspended than white students for similar infractions. Black, Latino and Native American students attended schools with higher concentrations of First-Year teachers with less experience than white students. Only 31% of Black Americans and 22% of Hispanic and Latino Americans are employed in management and professional occupations.

These are just a few out of hundreds of statistics, which point out current racial disparities in America across several sectors. The school-to-prison pipeline, mass incarceration, health inequity and voter suppression are just a few examples of institutions which continue to marginalize communities of color. So when people say we make everything about race, there are specific policies that we can point to that have caused this inequity across multiple aspects of life. By addressing these inequities, we can work towards a solution.

Ethnic Studies harms black and brown students and ruins self-esteem and performance. Studies have shown that Ethnic Studies benefit students. A 2016 Stanford Study on the academic benefits of Ethnic Studies courses found that among at-risk youth, attendance for those encouraged to enroll in the Ethnic Studies increased by 21 percentage points, GPA by 1.4 grade points, and credits earned by 23. The study also found significant effects on GPA specific to math and science. Grade Point grew in English Language Arts as well.

Experts say the courses also promote social emotional learning and help students and communities to recognize and celebrate their diversity. They're about pride and dignity, mutual respect and understanding, and collaboration across cultures.

Black, Asian, Latino, Native American and other ethnic communities deserve to have their history accurately represented in schools, just like white students have. Remember, the lack of representation for various racial groups and school curriculum has led to this need for an elective such as Ethnic Studies, whereas Eurocentric history has always been the standard and core curriculum of U.S. history.

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The opinions expressed in this piece, and all others in our Opinion section, represent those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of the Teach For America organization.

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