My goal for the #1000BlackGirlBooks campaign is to create systemic change across all school systems. I want there to be diverse books that reflect the lives of every person, regardless of whether or not they are in the majority.Collection: Change
People say, 'Dream big!' - but you have to think about the logistics. It's not just coming up with a great idea; it's how you can sell or market or promote that great idea.Collection: Great
I am unapologetic about the need for social change, greater inclusion, and equity.Collection: Change
My health and schoolwork come first. I work hard to get lots of sleep, but I probably work just as hard to spend time with friends.Collection: Health
I travel a lot, so I know that it's important to have people in your life to keep you ground.Collection: Travel
It was the desire to see black girls and our experiences in the books that I was given to read at school that forced me to speak my truth. I launched #1000BlackGirlBooks, a book drive to collect the stories of women of color.Collection: Truth
Black History Month could focus less on slavery and civil rights and more on the Harlem Renaissance and everything we have achieved. I want to know about the whole black experience.Collection: Experience
Dressing in an androgynous way, mixing up the masculine and feminine, blurring those boundaries - I'm cool with that. No one should ever be limited by stereotypes of gender, just as no one should ever be limited by stereotypes of race.Collection: Cool
Girls of color and young women need to be seen, heard, and valued. Schools can help make this happen by including our stories in the curriculum.Collection: Women
Anyone can change the world however they want for the better!Collection: Change
Frustration is fuel that can lead to the development of an innovative and useful idea.
When you are reading about a book, you focus on the main character, of course. When you have something in common with them and connect with them, you remember the lessons they learned, and then you can apply them to your life. So you can live the best life you can.
I think it is important to speak your mind. Tolerance of the ignorance sends the wrong message to kids.
Black girl stories aren't just for black girls: they're for everybody.
I believe activism is the true source of change in the world. Pushing to change social structures in communities that you are a part of is critical for making real lasting change.
When I was really little, I wanted to be our first woman president. I always knew I want to be the kind of grownup who makes people's lives better. And since that's pretty much the job of the President of the United States, it seemed like a good idea.
Innovation comes from, one, acknowledging yourself; two, studying and understanding the problem; and three, finding a solution.
I use Spotify to listen to music when I am taking a shower and when I am doing projects.
Every time I've heard Ava DuVernay speak, I have learned so much.
I want other kids to see the joy in reading and literacy and how, if you read about things, they become so much closer, and if you're willing to put in the effort and time and passion, you can really understand them.
In my class - in all fifth-grade classes - we were required to read 'classics,' books like 'Shiloh,' which is about a white boy and the dog he rescues. And 'Old Yeller,' which is about a white boy and the dog that rescues him. And 'Where the Red Fern Grows,' which is about a white boy and the two dogs he trains.
As members of society, we should always be pushing our girls to strive to be the best and to speak up and out about issues we see.
My parents taught me the importance of telling the truth no matter what.
If you like reading, you are allowed to like to dance and to like to sing and to like to act.
The first black girl book I fell in love with was most likely 'Please, Puppy, Please' by Spike Lee and Tonya Lee.
I have role models, but I take the attributes of the people that I admire, and I use them to create my best self.
Even though I wear glasses, I'm not just a mousy person who stays in my room - even though I do sometimes stay in my room and read.
I like NPR's podcasts because I can listen to those on the bus.
I'm working to create a space where it feels easy to include and imagine black girls and make black girls like me the main characters of our lives.
I think the biggest thing, where my passionate-ness comes from, is that I love reading, and it is something that I really care about.
I think the biggest thing is that success is not measured by whether or not you're on 'CBS This Morning' or whether or not you make the local news station.
Between school, homework, tests, and play time with my friends, I have worked my butt off to create this space where black girls' stories are read and celebrated in schools and libraries.
My passion for books has changed my life.
All my friends can probably only name one publishing house, and that is Scholastic; they are everywhere. Scholastic is the perfect partner for spreading my message of diversity, inclusion, and social action.
I have some friends who love to perform and wish they were getting the attention I am getting. But that doesn't stop them from supporting me.
Hillary Clinton is someone who's never waited around for someone else to do the hard work. She's been an organizer and a change-maker for her whole life, practically.
I have had the same friends for a really long time, and I like them because they like some of the stuff I like, but they are also really different from me.
It isn't always simple when America discovers you at 11 years old. Suddenly, it's not just homework that you're responsible for. Your name becomes a hashtag, and if you're lucky, you might even get invited on 'Ellen.'
Most girls spend most of their time at school. If real change comes from hearing our voices, it has to start in school, but school is a place where black girls tend to experience microaggressions. Microaggressions are not always obvious, ugly, or terrible things, but they make you feel as though your voice does not matter.
I suggest school buses make stops at local libraries so that children who do not have resources like books at home can get access.
I love YouTube. You can find me there watching cat videos. I even like to watch other people play video games. I know it's a bit creepy, but it's my thing.
I go to Amazon to browse for things I can then go find at the mall. It's like window shopping online. I want to touch the things that I buy. I am the kid who still likes actual books, bookstores, and libraries.
I am slightly obsessed with beauty products.
When I get lost in a book, it's just, like, magical!
Like feminism, I want to create systems and structures for the equity for all people, especially girls and women.
I believe that feminism needs to teach more girls about how to make institutional changes and how to further engage men and boys into being our allies.
Social actions means that you find an issue in your community, and you create an initiative to solve that issue or to help people.
I think writing gives me creative freedom.
When I create a story, I can make it however funny, sad, or happy I want it to be. And when I read, I feel like I'm in the story, and I get to experience it. It feels like I'm watching someone else do something, but I'm doing the thing that the character is doing as well.
For kids in 2nd or 3rd grade, I would recommend the 'Dear America' series. Most of the stories in the 'Dear America' series, if they have black girls, are about them being enslaved, but they escape or do something really adventurous.