Strengthen Your Child’s Racial Identity 

with Books

By Martha Caldwell

Our children need strong racial identities to feel good about themselves and be proud of who they are. A strong sense of racial identity 

is essential to self-esteem and healthy relationships. Learning to love and respect 

one’s self is an important part of growing up 

and seeing one’s self mirrored in characters 

in books can support this process. Research 

shows that it’s important for children to read books with characters who look like them, come from similar kinds of backgrounds, and face similar challenges. 

Rudine Sims Bishop, an expert on multicultural children’s literature, says that children who don’t see their culture represented in books they read are more likely to devalue their importance in society and in school. She believes that multicultural literature has the power to be a lifeline for students from diverse backgrounds, because it validates their existence.

Even ten years ago, it was difficult to find books story books that featured children of color as characters. Fortunately, this is no longer the case. Today there are a multitude of books to choose from. Some books talk about race and skin color explicitly, such as All the Colors We Are: The Story of How We Get Our Skin Color by Katie Kissinger and Hats Off to Hair, a celebration of differences through exploring different kinds of hair, by Virginia Kroll. There are books that deal with racial history such as Boycott Blues: How Rosa Parks Inspired a Nation by Andrea Davis Pickney or Jazz on a Saturday Night by Leo and Diane Dillan. Then there are books in which the race of the characters 

is incidental to the stories. In Jamaica’s Blue Marker by Juanita Havill, Jamaica resolves a conflict with a difficult classmate. In Jabari Jumps by Gaia Cornwall, Jabari overcomes his fear of jumping off the diving board with gentle encouragement from his dad.

While it’s important for children of color to “see themselves” on the pages of books, it’s also important for white children to read about characters from different backgrounds and cultures. When white families read books about race, it can open the door to conversations that help children develop empathy and understanding. Reading about characters of different races should be part of every child’s experience. Research shows that white children whose families talk freely about racial differences are less racist because they view race as a normal part of life and not a topic to be avoided. 

All children benefit from learning about the lives of characters from a diverse array of cultures and backgrounds.