1. Acknowledgments
Telling A People’s Story is dedicated to the memory of those who blazed new trails and opened the doors for the development of African-American children’s literature. Special appreciation […]
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3. Contextualizing The Firsts
African-American books were slow to gain attention within mainstream readership, publishers, and organizations that recognized and awarded creativity. In 1922, the John Newbery Medal was first presented to […]
4. African Traditions and Storytelling
African-American literature is essentially a synthesis of values and rituals rooted in African and American society. Recognizing African oral storytelling as the origin of African-American children’s literature is […]
5. The Middle Passage
The Middle Passage was a triangular trade route in which millions of Africans were shipped to other countries, including the New World, as part of the Atlantic […]
6. Slavery and The Underground Railroad
The institution of slavery was established in Virginia in 1619 and quickly spread throughout the colonies. It was very profitable for landowners, especially those who owned successful crop […]
7. Civil War, Emancipation and Reconstruction
The Civil War divided the U.S. over the highly debated issue of slavery. Most Northerners supported abolition, while the majority of Southerners pushed for the continuation of slavery. […]
8. Segregation
The beginning of Segregation preceded the Civil War, when in 1857 the Supreme Court ruled in Dred Scott v. Sanford that African Americans were not U.S. citizens, […]
9. Harlem Renaissance and The Great Migration
The Harlem Renaissance refers to a cultural, social, and artistic explosion in 1920s that took place in the New York City neighborhood of Harlem. This period is […]
10. The Civil Rights Era
The Civil Rights Movement began in 1954 following Thurgood Marshall’s successful defense of Brown v. Board 0f Education. One of the pivotal moments of the Civil Rights Era […]
11. Modern Cultural Identity
Stimulated by the freedom of conveying culturally-authentic messages, African-American authors and illustrators set out to create an experience for African- American youth. Children readily identified themselves with stories placed […]