Children's Materials and the Experts

Children's Materials and the Experts

This graphic shows that in 2015, animals and inanimate objects had a better chance of being represented in children's books than any marginalized group of people.

Source: https://www.bustle.com/articles/183948-how-diverse-is-childrens-literature-this-infographic-tells-the-disturbing-truth

Diversity and inclusion in children's materials:

There needs to be much more representation of historically marginalized peoples in children's books. Representation and inclusion of diverse races, abilities, neurodivergence, gender identities, and sexualities should be as common as the wide range of titles that feature white protagonists. There has definitely been progress made in the last several years, with titles like "Julian is a Mermaid" leading the way, as well as all recipients of the Coretta Scott King and Belpre Awards. What shows progress, but also that more work is needed, is the general search results for children's books on issues of gender identity. There are a bounty of lists, but most feature many of the same handful of titles. There should be more. Also, there should be more stories that don't solely center around the pain and oppression of People of Color, especially BIPOC, but show the joy that can be had as well. The term "Black boy joy" came about in response to the main portrayals in media of black men and boys being negative, as was also seen when news outlets and media tried to find photos of black men who were victims of police brutality that showed them in an unflattering and threatening light, like in a mugshot, not photos of them that showed joy or accomplishment. There has been debate on using the word "boy" in the term, which harkens back to racist and disrespectful referrals of black men as "boys". The concept behind the term "Black boy joy" though is one used to direct light onto Black men and boys experiencing joy. Representation is critically important. It is important to see joyful depictions of oneself, especially as a child, when one is still developing a sense of self.

What the experts in library science say:

It is evident that, though Nancy Larrick wrote the famous article “The All-White World of Children’s Books" in 1965, the U.S. is unfortunately still fighting the same battle with representation in children's books.

"Of 3,200 children’s books published in 2013, just 93 were about Black people, according to a study by the Cooperative Children’s Book Center at the University of Wisconsin" (Myers, 2014).

The availability of books with ample representation is an internal problem as well. Domino Renee Perez, the Director of the Center for Mexican American Studies at the University of Texas at Austin, and a public voices fellow with The OpEd Project, explains that "Publishing houses also have very white staffs, as do book review sections" (Perez, 2014). She states that, "Presently, independent publishers such as Lee & Low Books, ArtePublico Press’ Piñata Imprint, and Just Us Books, along with countless others, are largely responsible for the diversity in the children’s and YA book markets, a fact that is unlikely to change until mainstream publishing houses are economically motivated to acquire and promote works by authors of color" (Perez, 2014).