KQED Panel on People of Color in Children's Literature

Excited to be a part of this program tomorrow morning on public radio in the Bay Area. Tune in via the web if you're not local—East Coast time 1 o'clock in the afternoon.

People of Color Underrepresented
in Children's Books

Mon, Mar 24, 2014 -- 10:00 AM


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Ethnic diversity is on the rise in the U.S. So why are children's books still so white? Only about 6 percent of kids' books published in 2013 feature characters that are African-American, Latino, Asian or Native American. We take up the discussion with authors, illustrators and librarians. Does the ethnicity of characters in children's books matter to you?
Host: Mina Kim
Guests:
  • Kathleen Horning, director of the Cooperative Children's Book Center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison's School of Education
  • LeUyen Pham, illustrator of children's books including "Grace for President," "Freckleface Strawberry" and "Alvin Ho: Allergic to Camping, Hiking, and Other Natural Disasters"
  • Mitali Perkins, children's book author of "Rickshaw Girl," "Monsoon Summer" and "The Not-So-Star-Spangled Life of Sunita Sen"
  • Nina Lindsay, supervising librarian for children's services at the Oakland Public Library, former judge on the Newbery Award selection committee and co-author of the mock Newbery Award blog, "Heavy Medal"