Wanted: Book Characters of All Cultures and Colors
There’s a color in children’s literature. And it’s overwhelmingly white.
In a survey by the Cooperative Children’s Book Center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison of 3,200 American children’s books (out of a total of 5,000) published in 2013, a mere 7.9 percent of books featured a leading non-white character. It is a number that is grossly under-representative of American society, where 37 percent of residents surveyed in 2012 were not white. When broken down, 93 books, or 2.9 percent of the total surveyed, were about black or African American characters, 34 books (1 percent) were about American Indian characters, 69 books (2.1 percent) about Asian characters and 57 books (1.7 percent) about Latinos. Not all of the remaining books featured white characters; some featured animals or non-human characters.
The numbers were not further categorized to represent cultural heritage or ethnicity, language or sexual orientation, but the results are clear and dismal. The publishing world is filled with a cookie cutter character.
“What the low numbers for multicultural literature mean is that publishing for children and teens has a long way to go before reflecting the rich diversity of perspectives and experiences within and across races and culture,” the CCBC writes on their website.
In fact, statistically speaking, the United States is far more diverse than the books we create.
Just over 20 percent of American households speak a language other than English at home, and 12.9 percent of our residents were born outside of the United States. More than one in six people in our country are Hispanic, and almost one in eight are black or African American.
We are a nation of different socioeconomic, cultural, sexual, religious, and ethnic, and linguistic backgrounds, as well as different physical and mental abilities, and our society is richer when we recognize — and celebrate — our diversity.
It’s a problem for many writers, editors, teachers, librarians, parents and kid lit lovers, who have taken to social media with the #WeNeedDiverseBooks hashtags to call on publishers to do better. Part of it may be a skewed preference among white Americans to follow their literary calling — for instance, speaking about the cause, some Asian writers have admitted that becoming a writer was seen as a hobby, not a career choice, in their parents’ eyes, and therefore something they shied away from for many years — and writers do tend to write what they know. However, it’s not an excuse.
Publishing insiders made the claim that books about white characters sell better, so they stick to profitable demographics. But that hardly seems to be the right choice for kids, parents or educators, and the numbers have actually decreased since the year 2002, when 13 percent of the books surveyed by CCBC featured non-whites. The CCBC began tracking the numbers is 1985, and they also track authors’ ethnicities. In 2013, the books surveyed featured even fewer non-white authors — 223, or 6.9 percent.
Only main characters are counted, so the CCBC admits that their work is somewhat subjective; there tend to be a greater number of sidekick and secondary characters of diverse cultural backgrounds, but they say it is important for children and teens to see themselves in the main character, as the hero. Not just the loyal best friend or super villain.
Readers and kid lit fans agree.
“WeNeedDiverseBooks because it is hard to hate someone we can identify with,” tweeted @JenniferBrownYA.
A photo of four young African American boys hold up a sign that reads, “We need diverse books because we are superheroes,” followed by a photo of them dressed up as teenage mutant ninja turtles.
Fighting the notion that non-white students steer away from reading, a high school book club of four African American girls hold up a book by Tavabi Jones, and say, “This is my high school book club. They are NOT reluctant readers.”
Aisha Saeed, a Pakistani American YA writer, holds up a sign with her son in her lap. The sign reads, “We need diverse books because I want my boys to grow up in a world where they never feel INVISIBLE.”
An elementary school aged Asian girl wrote two signs. “We need diverse books because when people see heroes of different race, it can inspire them to be more open to other cultures,” and, “We need diverse books because it can stop racism and sexism.”
Even everyones (second?) favorite alien, the 1980's TV character Alf, jumped in on the conversation, holding up a tablet that reads, “We need diverse books because there are more aliens/vampires/werewolves/yeti in books than people of color.”
Literally thousands of people joined in the conversation on Facebook and Twitter, as well as the blogosphere, and a last minute panel was added to BookCon in 2014, entitled “The World Agrees: #WeNeedDiverseBooks.” The panelists include Jacqueline Woodson, author of Brown Girl Dreaming, Matt de la Pena, author of The Living, and Grace Lin, author of Where the Mountain Meets the Moon.
So, what’s the next step?
Kyle Zimmer, the CEO of First Book, was interviewed by Lynn Neary of NPR in May 2014 (click the preceding link to hear the full interview). She said the campaign to increase diversity has been going on subtly since 1965, but the results just aren’t there.
“After all these decades, you would hope that we might have made more progress than we’ve made…the disconnect is profound,” Zimmer said.
She has found that her network of teachers and librarians confirm what their organization has believed all along.
“They overwhelmingly report that when kids see themselves in books, they are far more likely to become enthusiastic readers,” Zimmer said. “But we also know that this isn’t just about kids seeing themselves in books. This is also about kids seeing other kids in books.”
Therefore, First Book has vowed to prove to publishers that there is a market for diverse books. To that end, First Book will guarantee that they will buy 10,000 copies of the titles they select that show a great commitment to diversity. Those books will go to lower income communities, but Zimmer encouraged parents of middle and upper income families to support the mission too.
“Everyone should be buying diverse content for their children — it’s the right thing to do,” she said.
Take your next step. Get informed. Make a difference.
For more information about the #WeNeedDiverseBooks Campaign and find out what you can do to support them, visit weneeddiversebooks.tumblr.com. First Book is at www.firstbook.org.
Read about the important of diversity in library programming and materials at www.ala.org/alsc/importance-diversity-references-and-resources.
Support publishers who choose multicultural children’s books, such as Lee & Low Books (www.leeandlow.com), whose tagline is “about everyone * for everyone.”
Finally, as a writer, be conscious about the characters you create.
If you write picture books and have input on the illustrations, you might try to steer the illustrator away from the standard blue-eyed, blonde-haired child. Books for older kids can always find a place for non-white main characters, rich in diverse cultural traditions — sometimes all it takes is looking at your manuscript in a new light.
Try telling your story from a different character’s point of view, and see if it makes a difference.
Share stories about kids who are Latino, or gay, or blind, or obese, or … any number of “non-traditional” book characteristics. Bring those characters to life, and give them a voice. Because you’ll probably find something magical sharing more of your own background, or getting to know another culture a lot more intimately. Just like the true American melting pot.
Notice of Reprint
The article was originally printed in the May 2014 print edition of CBW–LA Scribblers’ Scoop. The #WeNeedDiverseBooks message is important, and aligns closely with the CBW–LA motto: “because we all have a voice.”
Want to Know More?
Visit us online at cbw-la.org, like our Facebook page, chat with us on Twitter.
Even better? If you’re in the L.A. area, join us for a workshop or critique session! In this digital age, we still believe there’s nothing quite like connecting with a real person in real life. Heck, we’ll even let you tease us and call us old-fashioned.
We are huge supporters of the #WeNeedDiverseBooks campaign message. Our organization’s motto is: Because we all have a voice.
About the Author
Alana Garrigues is the Publications Director for CBW–LA and a freelance writer and editor.
