Two stories that I have read recently include those of stories about Indigenous people groups and those of Black people.
In Fry Bread by Kevin Noble Maillard and illustrated by Juana Martinez-Neal, fry bread, a traditional Native American staple dish is made, described, and celebrated by various members of Indigenous groups here in the US. My absolute favorite thing about this book is all of the Indigenous groups listed on the inside cover of the book that extends to the front cover page. This concept is cultivated again in the back of the book as well and is also incorporated into the story across a spread of pages discussing "Fry Bread is Nation." The way this powerful wording/imagery is created is absolutely breathtaking as the older generations either lift up or crouch down to the levels of the children discovering this mural. These adults are teaching and taking care to inform their children/nieces/grandchildren -- and to me that is power.
There is so much detail given to the artistic media of this story. Attention to the characters, ensuring that there is representation of all different members of the Indigenous groups. The representation of a vast array of individuals helps denote the stereotype of the typically represented, historical Native individual as Debbie Reese discusses in her article, "Critical Indigenous Literacies: Selecting and Using Children’s Books about Indigenous Peoples." The character representations in this story help children to know that Indigenous groups are still present today and many identify with their tribes that may not "look the part" as most literature represents.
The extensive Author's Note at the end of this story is beautifully positioned as the author, Maillard has broken down his note into sections, describing each page of the book. Under each heading, he has provided the reader with extensive background knowledge about what each page means to him, his family history as a Seminole member, and the history of how Native peoples have been treated in this nation. Under each heading he describes in great detail what his poem represents along with the weight it holds in his hands as the writer. This note proves every ounce of authenticity this story is worth.
In an interview with Maillard, he mentions that he had not written a book before, but wanted to represent himself and his family so that his two-year old may have someone to look upon and see in a mirrored fashion among literature. I appreciated his down-to-earth nature in admitting his initial defeat in writing this story -- needing his publishers assistance with the wording and format.
When using this story within the classroom, I would find it most appropriate to read this to students well before the traditional time of teaching about Indigenous people groups in the US, of the Thanksgiving holiday. I think it would be important to bring this piece of literature into students lives well before the month of November so that they may begin combatting the stereotypes they have already previously learned about, well before the traditional representations of these people groups returns for the holiday season. These students may be able to challenge the typical narrative about some of these people groups whenever they are presented with harsh generalizations through the knowledge that they have gained from this book. Understanding that Native Americans are more than the falsified history that is presented every year as a representation of peace and love. I really appreciate that this author has included history about events that have been made into holidays that are still accepted without question today -- challenging the reader to think deeper and question why they believe what they believe.
The second story I will address is Can I Touch Your Hair? written by Irene Latham & Charles Waters and illustrated by Sean Qualls & Selina Alko. The authors of this story have placed themselves in the roles of the main character children, embodying their own thoughts into the characters -- creating a truly authentic space within this story, speaking from their own minds and lives. The most incredible feature of this book is the fact that across each spread, the two main character's voices, thoughts, and lives are contrasted.
The events discussed in this story are fictional but do make references to contemporary events including police brutality, the death of Trayvon Martin, and riots and racial tension in Ferguson, Missouri. The characters in this story are Charles, a young Black boy and Irene, a young white girl. The story is set in an elementary school where the students are classmates but hardly friends, and almost never associate with each other's friend groups. At the beginning of the story, the two children do not seem enthused to be working together on the poetry project assigned by their teacher. But as each page progresses, the two students learn about their differences in thoughts, lifestyles, traditions, and anxieties.
Throughout this book, the authors have critiqued dominant cultural assumptions through means of speaking about their own life experiences through the characters they are portraying. One method for doing this includes the characters participating in events that are widely accepted among each child's culture but presenting more detail and individual experience that accompanies the child. These characters also challenged stereotypes through showing how each child feels when being embraced or scooped up into a category full of false information. For example, the poem The Athlete in the story presents Charles as being perceived by his peers to be excellent at basketball when in reality he is better with reading and academics than he is sports. The stereotype being challenged in this poem is Black people being presumably better with active sports activities. Another poem I found intriguing in regards to challenging stereotypes, is Dinner Conversation, in this poem, Charles challenges the narrative that all Black people must eat "soul food." He is vegan and his family finds a little difficulty accepting this, but Charles explains that he has made this life decision in order to be healthy!
The narrative of these two students having discussions about race at this age helps me as an elementary school teacher to understand that students are never too young to begin having these conversations. Each of these authors has authentically shown how to present their understanding and compare with someone else's in kind, gentle ways. This book has not only an extensive author's note in the back, but also an illustrator's note which shares the cultural authenticity that has been poured into this story, over and through.
My Hair
My hair is golden,
with a little brown.
My hair is long,
with a couple layers.
My hair is soft,
with a few rough patches,
split ends.
My hair is just a part,
but a rather large part,
of the whole that is me.
I change it up,
chop it off,
or let it grow and
grow.
Down my back,
or up in a knot.
I love my hair,
so dear
and certainly,
so near.
I love having hair that I can easily style, color, and cut. Hair is what brings my family so close at times, shaping how we look, helping how we feel, and cultivating conversation as we help each other out. My grandmother has been a hairstylist since she was 14 and it is something I have certainly taken for granted -- for I have never once had to pay for a hair cut, in all of my life. I normally never pay more than the cost of the color we buy either, as my mother has picked up only slightly, some of the skills necessary to fix up my roots every few months or so! I am thankful for the hair that is mine and for the hands that have helped me create exactly what I want out of my hair.
The animated short film that I watched as a part of this multi-modal text set is Hair Love by Matthew A. Cherry. This film adds depth to this text set through motion. Watching little Zuri go through intense emotional changes over her hair adds a depth that can't quite be captured through a book. Young children might be able to comprehend in a more literal sense, just how much Zuri's hair means to her and just how hard it is for her father to comprehend this. The figurative notion that her hair is given as this monstrous creature allows the viewer to truly understand the struggle that her father is going through when attempting to brush through/care for his daughter's hair. But in all, this film brings such empowerment to Black women and their hair.
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