- Growing up, I didn't see myself in the books I read.
- I'm excited for my Black daughter to be represented in the books we read together.
"Thick curl, sun crown." The words leaped from the board-book pages of Ruth Forman's "Curls." My daughter sat in my lap, cozy with the rain tapping the window, teething on her finger and staring at each of the wide-eyed little girls in the book — who were various shades of brown and had various textures of hair, some in braids, some in cornrows, some in full, blooming fros or adorable puffs.
As my little girl stared at each of the pictures, eyes full of wonder and color, mine misted up as I read to her. Something has changed in the landscape of children's books since I last read one. Little Black kids are finally represented in the books we read to them.
I wasn't represented in the books I read as a child
A child of the 1980s, I personally cannot remember encountering many books like this, books that simultaneously celebrated and normalized Black experiences.
I remember the "American Girl" series on Addy Walker, by Connie Porter, as I tried to collect every single title. Addy's story is about a formerly enslaved Black girl who escapes to freedom and the life she lives as a free person. While I treasured each page as a child, desperate to see a Black girl like me centered in a mainstream story. But as an adult, I recognize that so many of our stories have been based on Black trauma and pain.
Reading books like "Hair Love," by Matthew Cherry, that celebrate the fun — and sometimes struggle — of textured hair feels joyful and liberating.
I proudly read my daughter Vashti Harrison's "Dream Big Little One," which features real-life heroines such as astronaut Mae Jemison, politician Shirley Chisholm, and aviator Bessie Coleman, and shows that Black voices have long been interwoven into the story of America and not solely in enslavement.
There are benefits in seeing yourself represented
Those feelings of joy and pride are not coincidences. A recent study showed that parents like me want a "realistic, non-stereotypical representation of their race or ethnicity in the media they consume," for many reasons.
One of them is the tangible effects on the self-esteem of children who do not themselves represented in media. "It's important that children see themselves represented in media accurately, but not only in harm or marginalization," Onnie Rodgers, an assistant professor of psychology at Northwestern University's Institute for Policy Research, said. "While representation is important, parents must diversify that representation to make sure all stories are told."
This is especially important as communities across the nation debate removing diverse stories from school curricula and libraries. Coordinated bans against certain books will take away stories that allow our children to see themselves represented and celebrated.
Since I grew up not seeing enough stories told about people who look like me that did not center on trauma or pain, I know what it's like to crave being seen in that way, to wish that you could see yourself in a character that might actually resemble you, to wish that stories you had access to could speak to you, could speak about you. I do not want that for my daughter or any child.
All of our stories deserve to be told. Seeing my daughter have access to the representation that I wish I could have had as a child is restoring and encouraging to me. When we see ourselves, the world becomes a more beautiful place.