School Library

I attended the Howard Zinn Book Fair– “an annual celebration of The People’s History, past present and future.” This year’s theme was “Fight Supremacy: Actions Against Authoritarianism,” and there were many engaging panels, workshops, and tables. I found the session “Empowering Kids: Social Justice Picture Books” to be most relevant to the work that I do as assistant to the school library. In particular, I can apply what I learned to my goal of incorporating DEIB practices into library displays/read-alouds/collection management. I would definitely recommend the book fair to any and all educators, as it provides bountiful opportunities to reflect on DEIB themes and how they can apply to our work with students. 

Four authors shared picture books that they wrote with various social justice themes (see list below), then went on to discuss why they focus on social justice, how to navigate the “age appropriate” parameters, ways to empower children’s activism, and challenges/opportunities they have faced as authors.  All the panelists emphasized the necessity of highlighting underrepresented perspectives in history, particularly to counteract traditional narratives with stories of people who have a moral compass and stand up when something’s wrong. 

Why Social Justice? Many of the authors shared their inspiration for writing about social justice as initially stemming from their own activist parents, which fueled their motivation to inspire today’s young readers to take action. They pointed to the importance of social justice picture books for: starting critical thinking young, helping students feel less alone/othered, granting kids with the agency and freedom to read and think critically, teaching how to empathize with multiple perspectives, pushing back against the war on children’s books–all in the context of how fragile our democracy is right now. Sharing social justice themes and narratives when students are young is crucial because it sticks! 

What is age appropriate? The idea of literature being “age appropriate” is a topic fraught with controversy. The panel’s authors discussed the tough balance of depicting violent narratives to young readers, expressing the importance of doing this history justice and not erasing/shying away from it while also being aware of different entry points based on students’ age/maturity level and not depicting too graphic of images/words. One author piped up “if we’re not talking about it, others are!” Rather than sanitizing or distancing young people from heavy topics, we can teach them that bad things happen but lives continue and adversity can be overcome. 

Empowering Kids’ Activism: By sharing social justice picture books with diverse perspectives and representation, educators can encourage agency, serve as a role model, and demonstrate the multiple ways to be an activist. By making history accessible and relevant today, we can inspire young readers to take action and reflect, "What can I do?”, all while demonstrating that a world where people are loved and respected can exist. 

Author Books:

Michelle Markel:

• Fearless Benjamin: The Quaker Dwarf Who Fought Slavery

Laura Atkins:

• Calling All Future Voters

• Bringing the Beach Home

Innosanto Nagara:

• A is for Activist

• Counting on Community

• My Night at the Planetarium

• The Wedding Portrait

• M is for Movement

• Oh The Things We’re For

• Together

Leticia Hernández-Linares:

• Alejandria Fights Back

Anne Broyles;

• I’m Gonna Paint: Ralph Fasanella, Artist of the People 

• Eating to Save the Planet