Their ideas about themselves and the world in which they live are still developing.” Yet children’s books have also been utilized to perpetuate racist depictions and stereotypes (e.g., Helen Bannerman’s Little Black Sambo, 1899). This growing awareness demonstrates that there are few places not touched, influenced, or still upholding racism.Ĭhildren’s books are “the books people read before they are fully formed. Here we see the demand to dismantle White supremacy and to abolish and/or reform the many anti-Black institutions and systems our country runs on. In modern times, these acts have come to be defined as acts of White supremacy.Īnti-Black sentiments, beliefs, and practices were not confined to this period of time, though, as demonstrated by the innumerable protests and movements taking place all over the country in 2020. A way to maintain dominance and exert control throughout the broader American community was to create fictitious narratives about previously enslaved Black Americans. Home > Essays > Constructing New Meaning in Children’s Books: The Work of Faith Ringgold, Jerry Pinkney, and Vashti Harrison Constructing New Meaning in Children’s Books: The Work of Faith Ringgold, Jerry Pinkney, and Vashti Harrison Lee Priceįollowing the abolition of American chattel slavery in the 1860s, many Whites feared the integration of Black peoples into their communities.
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