Diverse Children Need Books with Diverse Characters

Hello Meltingpot Readers,

Everybody who has been following this blog for awhile, knows I love books. I love books like peanut butter loves jelly. I’d be lost without a book by my side at all times. And as such, I have tried to foster the same love of books and reading that I have, in my children. All three of them. And so far, I think I’ve been pretty successful. Son #1 and son #2 are both avid readers. And babygirl, at age seven, is a work in progress.

Reading is Fundamental

The way I encouraged my older children to read was simple. Before they could even speak in full sentences, I took them to the library as often as I could. When we lived in a small apartment in Brooklyn, the library was our favorite home away from home. As the kids got older, I began checking books out of the library for them to read on their own and I was very intentional in my choices for them. I made sure to select a combination of fiction and nonfiction titles. I always selected books that they could read on their own, so they wouldn’t get frustrated as early readers. And last but not least, I always selected children’s books with diverse characters.

We Need #DiverseBooks

It is as clear as glass that children need to see themselves reflected in their literature in order to create a strong sense of self. So, I of course was and still am, always on the lookout for books that feature boys and girls of color. I’m always thrilled if I can find a mixed-race character, but I’m also super happy to find books that feature Black characters as well, particularly if the characters are not mired in historical tragedy like slavery or Jim Crow laws in the deep South. 

But I’m not only looking for characters that look like my kids. I also select books with African characters, Asian-American characters, Native American characters, or any other characters that aren’t white. I want my kids to learn through their literary consumption about people who don’t look like them. Books provide an intimate, non-threatening, non-invasive way to learn about other cultures. For example, Babygirl knows what a hijab is and that they speak Urdu in Pakistan because we just read the delightful chapter book, Meet Yasmin by Saadia Faruqi. 

White Enough Already

Now, you may be wondering why I don’t include books with white characters on my list of acceptable reading material for my kids. Don’t they need to learn about white people as well? Of course they do, but they don’t need to spend one single second on that effort. White people, white culture, and white standards of beauty dominate all forms of American popular culture. They’re on TV, in the movies, in magazines, and their history is what is taught in schools. Without even trying, my kids are already de facto experts on whiteness. Where they need extra help is in the history, culture and identity of every other culture, including their own. 

Clearly, if you do the math, I’d probably run out of books to give my kids if I didn’t let them read any books with white people in them. And I’m not completely hardcore about my rules, although I will give my daughter a picture book about talking animals before I give her a book about a white princess who lives happily ever after. If the book has a cast of diverse characters or two main characters and one is white and the other is of color, I’m good with that. At the end of the day, I judge each book on its individual merits, but I’m guided by my instincts to find stories that center characters of diverse ethnic backgrounds. 

Reading Reverses Racism

I think it’s really important to build up a child’s self-esteem by showing them that their life experience is reflected in a book. It validates their existence. It shows them their worth. And not for nothing, because we live in a society that centers the white experience in all things, white parents can do their children a great favor by also bringing home books that feature protagonists of color so they too can see that Black and brown children’s lives are valued. That’s how they learn. 

I feel very lucky that I live in a neighborhood with not one, but two public libraries within a short distance. What’s more, because I live in one of America’s most diverse neighborhood’s, the selection of diverse children’s and YA titles at the libraries is pretty impressive. For anyone else who doesn’t live in such ideal circumstances, thankfully there are several online retailers that one can buy books from.

I often post my library finds for babygirl (and myself) on Instagram. Feel free to follow me there to get good ideas for diverse books. I’m curious, do you have a policy about what types of books you’ll bring home for your kids? Do tell. You know I’m listening.

Peace!