Characters That Are Not Black but You Know They Are
To raise kids who are actively anti-racist, it's important for adults to examine their own biases — even unintentional ones — and self-brainwash by reading acclaimed anti-racist texts, and then pass on what they larn to the children in their lives. Parents tin read kid-friendly, anti-racist books together, such as Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi'south Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You, and offer a rubber space for kids' anger, confusion, sadness and questions. Definitely don't shy away or sugarcoat "difficult" topics. Be honest and open.
When watching classic kids' movies by white creators — everything from The Goonies to most of Disney's animated films — be sure to point out and discuss racist stereotypes and attitudes. Remaining silent and just glossing over offensive elements found in children's movies isn't helpful. In the same manner you'd call out another person's racist deportment, call out films' failings and accept a meaningful discussion about them.
For parents of Black children, discussing racial identity and racism is a must, not only for exploring identity and understanding a lodge that centers on whiteness, but likewise for condom. On the other side, parents of white kids don't feel the same pressure, instead focusing on "we're color-bullheaded" or "we're all people" rhetoric that contributes to systemic racism and prevailing racist attitudes in our country. "If you look at me and don't run across the color of my skin, you don't see me at all," announcer Jeremy Helligar recently wrote in "When White People Say They 'Don't See Color,'" an commodity in Medium'due south Level imprint. "To accept Blackness people is to respect the uniqueness of the Blackness feel — non to pretend race and racism are illusions, unworthy of being discussed or even acknowledged."
With this in mind, in add-on to confronting racism and anti-racism outright, it's also of import to diversify kids' media intake. That is, you lot demand to fill up their bookshelves and Netflix streaming queues with works that don't just middle on Black pain or works that are meant to teach white people, but works past Black creators that celebrate Blackness and explore Black experiences and lives — works that express Black joy and dear.
Diversify Your Bookshelf
In add-on to buying your kids a copy of Stamped or Angie Thomas' bestselling YA novel The Hate U Give, endeavor diversifying the books on your kids' shelves, starting with these works by incredible Black artists and writers. For the greatest enduring bear upon, be sure to always diversify the voices and points of view your children see, non but while topics similar the Black Lives Matter movement are in the news.
Picture Books:
Sulwe: Written past Academy Award-winner Lupita Nyong'o, this book tells the story of Sulwe, a girl whose pare is "the colour of midnight" and who "just wants to be beautiful and bright, similar her mother and sis." Beautifully illustrated past Vashti Harrison, this NAACP Image Honor and Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor Award recipient takes Sulwe on a magical, star-filled journey that changes her life — and is certain to change the lives of young readers, too.
Game Changers: The Story of Venus and Serena Williams: Writer Lesa Cline-Ransome and laurels-winning illustrator James E. Ransome join forces to tell the story of the Williams sisters — two of the greatest lawn tennis players of all time. "This lovingly crafted picture volume biography centers on the incredible bail between Venus and Serena Williams," writes a reviewer for School Library Journal. It'due south "an of import choice for biography and sports collections" and a great style to introduce your kids to real-life heroes.
The Stuff of Stars: In this 2019 Coretta Scott Rex Illustrator Award-winning book, Newbery Honor winner Marion Dane Bauer and Caldecott Honor winner Ekua Holmes celebrate the nativity of all children — since the very moment our universe unfurled. The book's jacket copy perhaps puts information technology all-time, describing this poetic, difficult-to-put-into-words work as "A seamless blend of science and art, this picture book reveals the composition of our world and beyond — and how we are all the stuff of stars."
Radiant Child: The Story of Young Artist Jean-Michel Basquiat: This picture volume biography of acclaimed artist Jean-Michel Basquiat is a work of art all its own. Winning both the Coretta Scott Male monarch Illustrator Award and the Caldecott Medal, writer/illustrator Javaka Steptoe tells the story of Basquiat's childhood and early career, mimicking the street artist's definitive style. The American Library Association noted that the "collage-manner paintings with rich texture, bold colors and thick lines take readers on an emotional journey."
Last Cease on Market Street: Although this Newbery Medal-winner is authored by Latinx writer Matthew de la Peña, it's illustrated by Black artist Christian Robinson, who won the Coretta Scott Male monarch Illustrator Award for his piece of work on Last Stop on Market Street. In the book, a young Black male child named CJ accompanies his grandmother on a rainy expedition and questions why they, unlike other folks in the city, have to accept the jitney. Writing for The New York Times Book Review, Linda Sue Park noted "the warmth of their intergenerational relationship that will make this book then satisfying, for both young readers and the adults sharing it with them."
Middle-Course Books:
Finding Langston: In her debut novel, Lesa Cline-Ransome tells the story of 11-year-old Langston, a Blackness male child growing up during the Great Migration. When Langston moves from his home in Alabama to Chicago, Illinois, he spends his time in the Chicago Public Library — which welcomes all — and discovers the work of Harlem Renaissance poet Langston Hughes. Winner of both the Coretta Scott King Writer Honor and the Scott O'Dell Accolade for Historical Fiction, Finding Langston is a captivating read about both cultural heritage and personal growth.
Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky: Tristan Potent (Book 1): Acknowledged Percy Jackson and the Olympians author Rick Riordan has used his platform to uplift others and, here, he passes the mic to Kwame Mbalia, who tells the story of Tristan Stiff, a soon-to-be-hero who finds himself thrust into an epic populated by Black American folk heroes, such as John Henry and Brer Rabbit, besides as West African gods, like Anansi the Weaver. Looking for a middle-grade American Gods? You've come up to the right place.
The Crossover: On the basketball court, 12-year-old Josh Bong and his twin brother Jordan are incredible, simply Josh has another skill too — a gift for linguistic communication. Writer Kwame Alexander tells Josh's story as a novel in verse, one that's thrumming with middle and energy and passion. This Newbery Medal and Coretta Scott King Honor winner was dubbed a "beautifully measured novel of life and line" by The New York Times Book Review. Needless to say, it's a slam dunk.
Brown Girl Dreaming: Through a collection of vivid poems, Jacqueline Woodson recounts her babyhood growing up every bit a Blackness girl in Due south Carolina and New York during the '60s and '70s — amid both the remnants of Jim Crow and the growing Ceremonious Rights Movement. Both an exploration of growing upwardly and a dearest letter to language and stories, Chocolate-brown Daughter Dreaming won both the Newbery Honor and the National Book Award.
Look Both Ways: A Tale Told in Ten Blocks: Chosen "every bit innovative every bit information technology is emotionally arresting" past Entertainment Weekly, this Coretta Scott Rex Writer Laurels Book by Jason Reynolds tells a story in 10 blocks, just as the championship promises, and shows all the different directions kids' walks abode can take. Needless to say, this "clever exploration of the cloak-and-dagger trials and tribulations of middle-schoolers" will accept middle-grade readers both laughing at Reynolds' humor and mulling over the piercing poignancy of the 10 tales.
Immature Adult Books:
The Stars and the Blackness Between Them: Told in the voices of two 16-yr-old Black girls — Audre, who is from Port of Spain, Trinidad, and Mabel, who is from Minneapolis, Minnesota — The Stars and the Blackness Between Them is a lyrical, captivating and queer story about finding love and happiness in a world that seems to want to go along those joys locked away. The Coretta Scott Male monarch Honor Book is author Junauda Petrus' debut novel.
You Should See Me in a Crown: Debut author Leah Johnson has written an incredible first novel that the publisher describes as "a smart, hilarious, Black girl magic, own voices rom-com by a staggeringly talented new writer." In information technology, Liz Lighty, who has "ever believed she's also Black, too poor, too awkward to shine in her small, rich, prom-obsessed Midwestern town" dreams of getting away by way of an elite college with a world-famous orchestra — until her fiscal aid falls through. After realizing there'southward a scholarship available for prom queen and male monarch, Liz has to endure the catty competition — and alluring new girl Mack.
Children of Blood and Os: "Zélie Adebola remembers when the soil of Orïsha hummed with magic. Burners ignited flames, Tiders beckoned waves, and Zélie'south Reaper mother summoned forth souls. Just everything changed the night magic disappeared. Under the orders of a ruthless rex, maji were killed, leaving Zélie without a mother and her people without hope." That setup alone is sure to become y'all hooked on Tomi Adeyemi's acclaimed fantasy novel, which Amusement Weekly has dubbed "a miracle."
Who Fears Decease: Accolade-winning author Nnedi Okorafor's Who Fears Death is set in mail-apocalyptic Africa — in a region shaped by genocide between tribes. When a woman survives her village's devastation to give birth to a child in the desert, the new mother is certain her girl is special and names her Onyesonwu ("Who fears death?"). Onye grapples with the circumstances of her nascency, with tradition and love and magical powers. Read it before its adaptation hits HBO — and, while you're at it, pick upwards Okorafor'due south Hugo and Nebula Award-winning Binti trilogy.
All Boys Aren't Blue: Journalist and LGBTQIA+ activist George Chiliad. Johnson explores his childhood and college years in a series of personal essays that tackle topics similar gender identity, toxic masculinity, Black joy and brotherhood. School Library Periodical notes that the YA memoir's "conversational tone will leave readers feeling like they are sitting with an insightful friend. …Johnson anchors the text with encouragement and realistic guidance for queer Black youth."
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse: Sure, nosotros've seen quite a few Spider-Man origin stories on the silver screen, but "let'southward do this just one more time." In this iteration, our hero is Miles Morales (Shameik Moore), a Black Puerto Rican teen from Brooklyn who fears he's not living up to his father'southward high expectations. As Spidey fate would take it, Miles is bitten by a radioactive arachnid and must take up the Spidey mantle to save New York — and the multiverse. Hilarious, activeness-packed and full of center, the Oscar-winning Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Poetry proves anyone can clothing the mask.
Cinderella (1997): Co-produced by Whitney Houston — who besides appears on-screen as the Fairy Godmother — this '90s remake of the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical stars vocaliser Brandy in the titular role, making her the offset Black woman to portray Cinderella — or whatsoever Disney princess, for that matter. At the fourth dimension, Cinderella's racially diverse cast was considered groundbreaking and, looking dorsum, the tale seems to concord upward. "Cinderella was effortlessly, even unintentionally, progressive," R. Eric Thomas wrote for Elle. "Information technology conjured a world that was vibrant and modern and multicultural, and it filled that world with magic."
Queen of Katwe: Adapted from an ESPN magazine commodity and book by Tim Crothers, Queen of Katwe depicts the life of Phiona Mutesi (Madina Nalwanga), a Black girl who lives in Kampala, a slum in Uganda'due south capital, and who somewhen becomes a Adult female Candidate Master after winning at the World Chess Olympiads. Writing for Vox, Alissa Wilkinson notes that the Disney sports film is "the exact contrary of a white savior motion-picture show — just that's not the only reason it'due south peachy."
Space Jam: Co-starring Michael Jordan and Bugs Bunny, the moving-picture show showcases a fictionalized account (we promise) of what happened betwixt Jordan'south initial NBA retirement in '93 and his legendary '95 comeback. According to Infinite Jam, he was drafted by the Looney Tunes characters to help them win their freedom from a ruthless amusement park owner, Mr. Swackhammer, by chirapsia the magnate's Monstars — a villainous group of toons who stole the talent of other existent-life NBA players — in a basketball match.
The Princess and the Frog: While The Princess and the Frog certainly has some fair criticisms pointed at it — namely that the get-go animated Black Disney Princess spends most of the movie equally an amphibian — in that location's still a lot to honey hither. Namely, Tiana (Anika Noni Rose), the titular princess, dreams of ane day opening her own eating house in downtown New Orleans — simply to find her plans delayed when she kisses a prince who's been magically transformed into a frog. Hilarious, heartfelt and total of jazz-inspired hits, this film ranks amongst Disney'southward all-time.
Diversify What You're Streaming: Alive-Action Television receiver Shows
Reading Rainbow: This educational public TV series is a archetype. Hosted by LeVar Burton, Reading Rainbow won over 200 broadcast awards, including a Peabody and a whopping 26 Emmy Awards. The concept? Get kids to read. And it worked. Reading Rainbow is PBS' third-longest running children's serial, just after Sesame Street and Mister Rogers' Neighborhood and, just like those shows, it's essential childhood viewing.
Gullah Gullah Island: Some other throwback, Gullah Gullah Isle originally aired from 1994 to 1998 on Nickelodeon'due south Nick Jr. Starring Ron and Natalie Daise, who besides served as cultural advisors, the testify was inspired past the Gullah civilisation of Ron'south domicile — St. Helena Island, S Carolina, which is part of the Sea Islands. Total of catchy songs and hilarious humor, Gullah Gullah Island was groundbreaking, becoming the starting time preschool TV program to star a Black family.
Grown-ish: This comedy spin-off of ABC'south hit series Blackness-ish follows the Johnson family's eldest daughter Zoey (Yara Shahidi) as she weathers her freshman year of college. Grown-ish follows familiar teen fare, but it does so with precipitous, fresh humor — and a whole lot of charm. The ensemble bandage is rounded out by R&B duo Chloe Bailey and Halle Bailey and Trevor Jackson.
Moesha: Starring R&B singer Brandy as Moesha Denise Mitchell, Moesha centered an upper-eye grade, Black high schooler whose family unit lived in Los Angeles. The teen sitcom dealt with pregnancy, drug use, premarital sex, grief, race relations and typical high-school drama. With guest appearances from Usher, Octavia Spencer, Gabrielle Matrimony, Billy Dee Williams and other acclaimed Black actors, Moesha ran for six seasons, giving new and returning viewers plenty to marathon.
Black Lightning: The CW'south Black Lightning portrays retired superhero Jefferson Pierce, the titular DC Comics hero, and his family unit. His eldest daughter, Anissa Pierce, begins to manifest her own powers of invulnerability and super forcefulness, becoming the vigilante known equally Thunder. Eventually, she joins her dad, fighting alongside Black Lightning's team, and moonlights as her Robin Hood-esque persona Blackbird equally well. Not many shows middle on Blackness lesbian characters — let lone a queer Blackness character who'due south invincible — and that makes Black Lightning (and Anissa Pierce) pretty darn awesome.
Diversify What You're Streaming: Animated Shows & Shorts
The Proud Family: Created by animator Bruce W. Smith — and produced by Jambalaya Studios — this animated sitcom ran on the Disney Channel from 2001 until 2005. The show's main protagonist is xiv-year-old Penny Proud (Kyla Pratt), who is constantly navigating her father Oscar's (Tommy Davidson) overprotectiveness and embarrassing shenanigans. Nominated for several Annie and NAACP Image Awards, The Proud Family unit nabbed a BET Award for Outstanding Comedy Series — and, luckily for viewers, it'southward available on Disney+.
Static Shock: DC Comics' Static Shock is iconic for many reasons — and the catchy theme song is definitely ane of those reasons. Apart from that, the evidence is also iconic for being one of the few times a Black superhero was the titular character/star of their own serial. For the uninitiated, Static Shock is nearly Virgil Hawkins, who, after being exposed to a mutagen gas, develops electromagnetic powers and the alter-ego "Static."
Pilus Dearest: For those who aren't familiar with Matthew A. Cherry'due south Oscar-winning brusque film, Hair Love tells the story of Zuri, a young Blackness daughter who is proud of her hair, which "kinks, coils, curls every which way." On a special 24-hour interval, she needs a special await and enlists her devoted father's help. "I love that Pilus Love [highlights] the human relationship between a Black father and girl," said University Award-winning filmmaker Jordan Peele. "Matthew leads the ranks of new creatives who are telling unique stories of the Black experience. We demand this." To back-trail his Oscar-winning brusque, Cherry released a picture book version with illustrations past the acclaimed Vashti Harrison.
Dear Basketball game: Blithe past legendary Disney animator Glen Keane, Honey Basketball was a passion projection for the belatedly Kobe Bryant. And that passion project led to an Oscar for All-time Animated Brusk Film. Narrated past Bryant, the film is based on a letter of the alphabet he wrote for The Players' Tribune in November 2015 when he appear his retirement from the NBA.
Doc McStuffins: Although creator Chris Nee isn't Black, she has been praised for Medico McStuffins' portrayal of Black characters, including the titular grapheme — a young girl capable of fixing toys with a little help from her pals. Dr. Myiesha Taylor, founding president of Artemis Medical Guild and namesake of Dottie "Physician" McStuffins' female parent, said that "This program featuring a little African-American girl and her family is crucial to changing the time to come of this nation." Called "Cheers for kids" by Nee, Medico McStuffins also garnered praise for featuring an interracial lesbian couple.
Source: https://www.ask.com/entertainment/black-creators-and-characters?utm_content=params%3Ao%3D740004%26ad%3DdirN%26qo%3DserpIndex
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