BLACK LIVES MATTER: Inclusion in the days of George Floyd

 El día en que descubres quien eres by Jacqueline Woodson

June 2020

Dear Community, 

We have and always will stand for the equality of Black lives. From the beginning of our company, we have made it a priority to include Black authors and illustrators in our curated collections. And still, we are not done listening and learning about how we can do more. 

Underrepresentation of Black stories is the reality in American children’s publishing.  Black or African Americans in the United States represent 13.4% of the population.  In 2015, the number of newly published books featuring African American children was 7.6%.  That figure has improved since then, to 10% in 2018, but still remains incredibly disproportionate to white protagonists and even books centered on animal characters.  

In our work as book curators, we rely on publishers making an effort to expand their character base, which means it is our role to talk to publishers about being more inclusive. It’s our responsibility to communicate the types of stories our audiences want.  We need more diverse literature, originally written and illustrated by the Black community, and we will use our voice to push for that. 

As an Atlanta-based company, we are so proud of the vibrant and powerful Black community that exists here in our city. Just last week, the neighboring city of Decatur, GA removed a long-standing Confederate statue. We know there is still much work to be done to end everyday injustices our Black neighbors face, and we’re here to fight for it.  

In solidarity,

The team at Hexagramm Books