Race and Social Equity
Bellingham Public Library stands with the Urban Libraries Council Statement on Race and Social Equity.
We acknowledge that we gather on territory that has been the traditional and ancestral homeland to the Lhaq’temish (Lummi people), the Nooksack people, and other Coast Salish tribes of this region Since Time Immemorial.
We honor our shared responsibility to this land and these waters, we commit to learning from indigenous wisdom, and we strive to repair and deepen our relationships as neighbors and friends.
Community Voices Kits
Community Voices Book Kits center and celebrate diverse voices and experiences in our community. These kits, curated by the Bellingham Public Library children’s staff will provide stories, conversation opportunities and resources for families that help bridge learning, understanding and connection with each other.
Resources for education and discussion.
Talking with Kids about Race
- 16 ways to help children become thoughtful, informed, and BRAVE about race –Embrace Race Action Guide (English)
- 16 ways to help children become thoughtful, informed, and BRAVE about race –Embrace Race Action Guide (Spanish)
- Crucial Conversations: It’s Never Too Early To Talk About Race –School Library Journal
- Never Too Young: Ages and Stages of Racial Understanding (English) –Sesame Street in Communities
- Never Too Young: Ages and Stages of Racial Understanding (Spanish) –Sesame Street in Communities
- Talking to Our Children About Racism & Diversity – The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights
- Teaching Young Children about Race – Social Justice Books
- They’re Not Too Young to Talk About Race–Children’s Community School
- Beyond the Golden Rule: A Parent’s Guide to Preventing and Responding to Prejudice (PDF)
- A Clinical Perspective on Talking to Kids About Racism
- Educating Our Children: Talking to Kids About Racism & Police Brutality
- Racism and Violence: How to Help Kids Handle the News
- Racism and Violence: Using Your Power as a Parent to Support Children Aged Two to Five
- Starting conversations using Brown Bear, Brown Bear
- Talking to Young Children about Race and Racism
- Anansesem – Caribbean children’s and young adult book lists
- Anti-Racist Digital Reading List – eBooks and eAudiobooks available with your library card
- Asian American and Pacific Islander Voices for Kids – book list
- Arab American Teen Fiction – book list
- BIPOC Booklists – Kid Lit Collective
- Bookmarks: Celebrating Black Voices
- The Brown Bookshelf – highlighting Black voices and creators
- Children’s Book Council on Diversity
- Christian Robinson reading You Matter
- De Colores: The Raza Experience in Books for Children
- Diverse Book Finder
- Indigenous Children’s and YA Best Books – booklists from American Indians in Children’s Literature Blog (Dr. Debbie Reese of Nambé Pueblo)
- Jelani Memory reading A Kids Book About Racism
- Kwame Alexander reading The Undefeated
- Latinx Fiction for Teens – booklist
- Latinxs in KidLit – book lists and reviews for Latinx teen, middle grade, and children’s literature
- Multicultural Booklists – plethora of booklists for children, teens, and adults curated by Social Justice Books
- Muslim Booklists – Hijabi Librarians
- Race and Racism – all Bellingham Public Library recommended staff picks booklists
- Raising Antiracist Children: A Practical Parenting Guide by Britt Hawthorne
- Since Time Immemorial Early Learning Curriculum Kits
- Young, Proud, and Sung-jee: A children’s book on fighting anti-Asian racism during COVID-19.
- Talk About Race and Racism–PBS Kids
- Whatcom CARE (Coalition for Anti-Racist Education)-Great resources, opportunities for monthly gatherings
- Young and Indigenous Podcast — Children of the Setting Sun Productions
- How To Be Anti-Racist with Ibram Kendi and Renee Watson
- Raising Equity Podcast
- CNN/Sesame Street Town Hall
- The Danger of a Single Story – Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
- Freedom Reads: Anti-Bias Book Talk Series – Social Justice Books
- Jason Reynolds and Jacqueline Woodson: Race in America
- Jason Reynolds on the Today Show: Talking to Kids About Race
- Land of the Setting Sun: Lummi Fishing
- Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors – Dr. Rudine Sims Bishop
- Q&A with Dr. Kira Banks: How to Talk to Kids About Racism
- Talking to Kids About Racism with Dr. Kira Banks
- Center for Racial Justice in Education: Resources for Talking about Race, Racism, and Racialized Violence with Kids
- The Conscious Kid
- Embrace Race
- Raising Race Conscious Children
- UW I-LABS Learning Module: Let’s Talk about Race
- Vamos a Leer – guides for teaching about Latin America for educators
- We Need Diverse Books – assorted resources for parents and educators
Race and Anti-Racism Resources for Adults
- Anti-Asian acts and policies are an ugly part of our history | HeraldNet.com
- Business Insider: 26 Simple Charts to Show Friends and Family Who Aren’t Convinced Racism is Still a Problem in America
- Medium: 103 Things White People Can Do for Racial Justice
- Scientific American: Special Report: The Black Lives Matter Movement
- Medium: This “Equity” picture is actually White Supremacy at Work
- Harvard Business Review: When and How to Respond to Microaggressions
- Centering Relationality: A Conceptual Model to Advance Indigenous Knowledge Organization Practices – Sandra Littletree (Diné/Eastern Shoshone), Miranda Belarde-Lewis (Zuni/Tlingit), and Marisa Duarte (Pascua Yaqui Tribe)
- Short TikTok video summarizing the article by @IndigenousLibrarian
- Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer
- Anti-Racist Digital Reading List: eBooks and eAudiobooks available with your library card
- Racism in America – histories, some memoirs, titles that explore the many systems of racism in America and their impact. This includes many populations including Black, Hispanic, AAPI, Indigenous, etc.
- Anti-Racism – titles that are more rooted in actions, taking steps to eliminate racism at all levels, individual, institutional, and structural.
- Immigrant and Refugee Experience in the United States – memoirs and the history of the immigrant experience in America. Some crossover with ‘Racism in America’ list, but the focus is more on personal experiences.
- Asian American and Pacific Islander Experiences – memoirs, novels, non-fiction historical research, DVDs.
- Recent East Asia Fiction – East Asia is the eastern subregion of the Asian continent and includes China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, and Tibet.
- Recent Southeast Asian Fiction – Southeast Asia is a subregion of the continent of Asia. It includes Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore, the Philippines, Malaysia, Cambodia, Myanmar, and Laos.
- Recent South Asian Fiction – South Asia is the southern part of the continent of Asia. It includes Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.
- Recent Black Fiction – Must reads from Black authors.
- Recent Latinx Fiction – Must reads from Latinx authors.
- Recent Native Fiction – Must reads from Native authors.
- All Bellingham Public Library Staff Picks Lists
- Young and Indigenous Podcast — Children of the Setting Sun Productions
- 5 Podcasts To Listen To If You Really Want To Know About Race In America
- Asian Enough
- Green Card Voices
- Latina to Latina – Interview series hosted by Alicia Menendez
- What About Those Promises – history of Lummi Nation Treaty of 1855
- Harriette “Hiahl-tsa” Shelton Dover: Her Life and Legacy on Vimeo, author of Tulalip from My Heart
- Centering Relationality in Indigenous Knowledge Organization – Sandy Littletree (Diné/Eastern Shoshone) DCMI Webinar (view time: one hour)
- The Unrooted Experience, stories by local community members
- BLM Peaceful Assembly – Bellingham, WA, June 6, 2020
- We are not strangers documentary about 1907 riots video
- Black Skin, White Masks: Racism, Vulnerability & Refuting Black Pathology
- PBS Playlist: Racism in America
- TED Talk Playlist: Talks to Help You Understand Racism in America
- Under Our Skin: What Do We Mean When We Talk about Race?
- The West Was Built on Racism
- White Privilege explained in 5 minutes
- Bellingham, a history from below: a virtual walking tour with Josh Cerretti’
- Finding Strength & Diversity in Whatcom County
- Bellingham Racial History Timeline (wwu.edu)
- Bellingham Walking Tour: Exploring Systemic Racism – ArcGIS StoryMaps
- Arch of Healing and Reconciliation website
- People of the Sea and Cedar: A Journey Through the Tribal Cultures and History of the Northwest Coast – The Whatcom Museum
- 21 Day Racial Equity Habit Building Challenge
- Anti-Oppression Guide: Anti-Racist Resources from New York Institute of Technology Library
- Anti-Racism Guide from Framingham State University Library
- Black Women’s Suffrage from Digital Public Library of America
- Dismantling Racism Works Web Workbook
- I Have a Dream Guide from Howard University Libraries
- National Museum of African American History and Culture: Being Anti-Racist
- Race Forward
- Racial Equity ToolsRacial Equity Tools
- Resisting Racism Guide from University of Washington Libraries
- SAGE Journals: Structural Racism and Police Violence
- Seattle Civil Rights and Labor History Project from the University of Washington