Little Free Diverse Libraries
What is it: A movement born only six months ago on social media that is having real-world impacts, Little Free Diverse Libraries aim to amplify and share stories of Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour.
What you need to know: You may have seen Little Free Libraries in your community: those cute wooden boxes around since 2009 where you are invited to take a book and leave a book. But have you thought about the books that make-up those libraries? Do they represent the community, country, or context in which you live? Do they represent you, your voice, and your life? Do they include a breadth of voices, diverse backgrounds, and inclusive stories?
On a walk, through her home neighborhood of Arlington, Massachusetts where she was sitting out the pandemic, New York School Counsellor Sarah Kamya noticed that those in her own neighborhood didn’t do any of those things. As a daughter of a black father and a white mother, they didn’t reflect her. Neither did they speak to the Black Lives Matter Movement that was taking hold across the county.
With $150 donated from her family, Kamya brought books from black authors and began placing them in the Little Free Libraries in her neighborhood. This tiny gesture grew and grew: boxes of books by BIPOC authors began arriving at her home, as did donations from people to buy more books from diverse authors, all of which were to be distributed in other Free Libraries. Kamya bought directly from black-owned bookstores and opened her own Little Free Diverse Library.
Over 2,200 books have now been distributed to Little Free Libraries across 50 states, over 15 Little Free Diverse Libraries have been installed, $16,000 of books have purchased from Black-Owned bookstores, and the movement has inspired 20 LFDL Instagram accounts.
Why we think it matters: The stories that we are exposed to shape our understanding of the world and our place in it, not just in terms of whose lives we get to see represented but in terms of who gets to even tell those stories. Growing up, Kamya didn’t see herself in the characters or the narratives of the books she loved to read. Little Free Diverse Libraries aims to change that by widening the books that we are all exposed to so that we can increase our empathy, understanding, and kindness towards others, and think differently about issues such as social justice, systemic racism, and gender inequality.
As Kamya says: “I find books to be such an important place where one can build their self-confidence and self-worth, start conversations, and create change. I believe that Black and brown children deserve to see themselves represented in books and that if you cannot see it, you cannot be it. Some of my favorite books have been discovered in Little Free Libraries, and I am so excited for others to discover books they may have never seen, books they wish they had seen, and books that create conversations and change for years to come.”
The project has since expanded to include books about LGBT+ issues, people with disabilities, and who have different religious beliefs.
How to bring this into your life: Read widely, from diverse authors. Kamya is generous with her knowledge of books, and you can find recommendations for both adults and children on the Little Free Diverse Libraries Instagram. Among her recommendations are: Hair Love by Matthew A. Cherry, illustrated by Vashti Harrison; Of Thee I Sing by Barack Obama, illustrated by Loren Long; Talullah the Tooth Fairy CEO by Tamara Pizzoli, illustrated by Federico Fabiani; and Amazing Grace by Mary Hoffman, illustrated by Caroline Binch.
In her own words: “Having conversations regarding race with children and youth is extremely important to me. I truly believe that we have to teach about race and differences and a lot of that starts at home, and through books. I also find it important for books to represent diverse characters because if you can’t see it, you can’t be it. This project has allowed me to show Black and brown children that they deserve to have themselves represented, celebrated, and portrayed in literature. For Black authors, this project has allowed me to bring their work to the forefront. For so long Black authors have not had the recognition they deserve and this project has allowed me to highlight their work, as well as the Black-owned bookstores who have made it their mission to amplify Black voices.”
To find out more (or even start your own): Instagram
