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“Representation is about power. If you’re mainly reading books about white boys and men, the message you receive is that white boys and men are — and should be — at the center of the universe.”
— Philip Nel, Author
Four years ago, I started this journey to uncover the necessity of diverse children’s books within the American School System. After working within the educational field for more than 12 years, I realized many things. First, the American school system was academically going downhill. The superintendents, principals, administrators, teachers and more saw it but did not know, and still do not know, what to do about it.
Secondly, technology was being pushed into the school system with hopes of educating our youth, but it is seamlessly failing. Teachers are placing computers and iPads in front of students to do assignments electronically, which then go about assessing a student’s “progress” once completed. This had led to less human interaction when teaching and more one-on-one isolation with technology.
Is this good? I don’t think so! However, my opinions around America’s failing school system, when it comes to academics and technology, will have to wait for some other time. I am writing this piece to highlight another thing I noticed while working in the educational field. That is the lack of diverse children’s books in our classrooms and curriculums.
Yes, unfortunately this problem exists within our 21st century. Who would've thought? Not many folks, because when there is less attention pointed to an area or a need for change, no one seems to care. However, for one who has worked within the school system for many years, I am here to pull back the curtain and reveal the true wizard behind it.
Let’s take a journey back to when African Americans wrote children’s books, but literature refused to recognize them.
“African American children’s literature first appeared in the late 19th century. However, this particular literature was never a central component of schooling. Not, unlike that of African American literature written for adults, African American children’s literature had limited awareness among readers; circumscribed publication and distribution; omission from libraries, school, and bookstores; and uniformed criticism.”
— Journal of Negro Education, Harris J. Violet
African American children’s literature did not even show up in the literary canons for schooling purposes. Literary canons are works in which educators, critics and more suggest be read in schools. Those were “great” pieces of works like Oliver Twist, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, The Scarlet Letter and more. These are books which not only silent African Americans, but other diverse backgrounds in America, as well.
The bad thing about this is it continued into the 20th and 21st century when I was going to school. I remember reading the same books in my english class. The only time I learned about my own race or another was during Black History Month or when the Europeans encountered the Native Americans when coming abroad.
To see so much diversity in America and experience the lack of it in our education system baffles me. Today, we still struggle with the same problem. According to Cooperative Children’s Book Center School of Education at the University of Wisconsin Madison, African Americans make up 10% of children’s books, Asian Pacific Islander / Asian Pacific American make up 7%, Latinx make up 5% and Native Americans make up 1%, while Caucasians dominate the space at 50%.
The United States of America labels itself "the land of the free and home of the brave." However, the word "free" rings deeply in our ears. Free extends pass one’s actual living, but also their thinking. When a child of color is continuously fed the idea of a Eurocentric experience through school text and children’s books, they begin to think, “I can’t be or do that.”
In a report issued March 2019 by NBC News journalist Gwen Aviles, she highlights the rarity of elementary schools showcasing books and authors of color and how it can impact a child’s development. Aviles interviewed Iriving Torres, a 22-year-old administrative assistant at New York City’s Public Theater, he recalled being a big fan of Marvel’s superhero character, the Human Torch, and wanting to dress up like him.
Torres stated, “In my mind, it wasn’t impossible for me to have superpowers, but I didn’t think I could be the Human Torch because of the way I looked … I remembered thinking, ‘I can’t be him, because I’m not white.'”
The importance of filling schools and classrooms with books displaying images and characters of color is essential to a child’s growth.
In the same NBC News article, NYU Coalition for Educational Justice coordinator Natasha Capers states, “Books can shape how children view themselves, others and the world and how they will form self-identity. When children are not seeing themselves represented by curriculum, it sends them a message.”
Could this message possibly be worthlessness? Do they feel their stories, circumstances and situations do not matter?
In a New York Daily News piece, Aneth Naranjo, a sophomore at John Jay College in Manhattan, New York said, “I never learned about all the contributions people of color made. How are you supposed to be motivated when all you’re taught is that your people have been massively killed and colonized.”
In cities highly populated with families of color such as New York, New York (51%), Camden, New Jersey (90%), Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (55%) and more, the necessity of exposing children to books and authors of color in classrooms outside of the subject of history is one of importance.
In conclusion, every child needs to be able to see themselves in the books they are reading in school. The necessity of diverse books in the classroom is of utmost significance. It not only breeds a sense of value in children of color, but also helps to develop awareness of other races, cultures and more to children of caucasian descents.
