In the Spirit of Activism

This children’s book is a great introduction to Fannie Lou Hamer, who was a contemporary of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. but was from a much different background. Where he was educated and coached to be a leader within the civil rights movement, Hamer was the 20th child of sharecroppers in Mississippi, and had a sixth grade education. Even with these beginnings, she rose to be a leading voice within the movement. Her voice and message of what Black people suffered was so strong that a speech she gave at the Democratic National Convention in 1964 garnered nation-wide support, despite President Johnson interrupting it.

Tiffany Jewell is an anti-racist and anti-bias activist, and with this book, she has given readers an actual guide to taking down the beast that is racism, starting with the self. She educates on the current usage of terminology that is used in reference to marginalized identities, dispels misconceptions around race, and offers activities at the end of each chapter that encourage self reflection. This is marketed a little more towards young adults, but should be suitable for all ages.

Disabled activist Alice Wong gives a voice to the 20% of the American population that is disabled. Through the various essays, blog posts, eulogies, Congressional testimonies, and other writings that comprise Disability Visibility, Wong demonstrates the complexity of being disabled. Among the disabilities given visibility here are blindness and deafness, generalized mental illness, autism, fibromyalgia, and more. There’s also an excellent YA version of this book as well: Disability Visibility (Adapted for Young Adults).

Solomon and Rankin are journalists who have gathered a collection of essays and musings from well-known Black people from various professions about what exactly white supremacy is. They also cover grassroots organizing for how to combat it, partially by highlighting its blatant as well as its subtle forms. Among the contributors here are Ta-Nehisi Coates, Harry Belafonte, Tarana Burke, Reverend Dr. Valerie Bridgeman, Patrisse Khan-Cullors, and others. The conversation here is started by Black thinkers, but the message is meant for everyone with a mind to fight white supremacy.