ML Interest Tag: activist

10 Women Who Changed Atlanta Forever

by Tinybeans Team

Women’s History Month means it’s time to take a closer look at the women who helped shape Atlanta. From voting activists to savvy businesswomen and generous philanthropists, Atlanta’s women have forged a path for others to follow. Keep reading to learn about 10 women who changed Atlanta forever.

Stacey Abrams

Stacey Abrams is a political leader, voting rights activist and author who is best known for losing the gubernatorial race for Georgia only to launch Fair Fight and Fair Count, two organizations dedicated to funding and training voter protection teams in 20 battleground states. Her organizations are credited with having a hefty role in the reversal from Red to Blue of Georgia voters.

Get a Sense for It
Make plans to visit the Atlanta History Center’s exhibit, “Any Great Change: The Centennial of the 19th Amendment.” Marking the 100th year anniversary of the right for women to vote (which was ratified Aug. 18, 1920), the exhibit celebrates the suffrage movement with a collection of photos, documents, memorabilia and interactive voting stations. Furthermore, the exhibit, which is displayed in the Swan House, also highlights Georgia’s hometown connections to the movement; the original Swan House owners, Emily C. MacDougald and her daughter, Emily Inman, were active suffragettes in the local efforts.

130 West Paces Ferry Rd. NW
Buckhead
404-814-4000
Online: atlantahistorycenter.com.

 
 

Sara Blakely

Sara Blakely is founder and owner of shapewear brand Spanx, which sells undergarments, leggings, swimwear and maternity wear in over 50 countries. And we're willing to bet we didn't have to tell anyone that. Blakely went from selling fax machines door-to-door to inventing, branding, and marketing a product that's ballooned to worldwide recognition—and turned her into a self-made billionaire.

Check It Out
Head to the Savannah College of Art and Design's fashion museum (SCAD FASH) to marvel at the role of garments as important conduits of identity. And, because of Blakely, we all have a leg up on getting ourselves into any identity we care to claim.

1600 Peachtree St. NW
Atlanta, GA 30309
404-253-3132
Online: scadfash.org

Anne Cox Chambers

Anne Cox Chambers was a businesswoman, philanthropist, and power broker in Atlanta during the 1960s until her recent death, at 100 years old in 2020. She co-owned the family business, Cox Enterprises, with her sister for 33 years. She engineered the partnership between The High and The Louvre, and a wing of the museum is named for her. She served as the Ambassador to Belgium, and she served on the board of nearly every philanthropic organization in Atlanta, not to mention The Coca-Cola Company.

Walk in Her Shoes
Check out just a tiny bit of Chambers' legacy by heading to The High Museum of Art, where you can get messy with your Toddler on Toddler Thursdays, or enjoy a Second Sunday family day.

1280 Peachtree St. NE
Midtown
404-733-4400
Online: high.org

Shirley Franklin

Shirley Franklin served as the 58th mayor of Atlanta, and was the first woman to hold the post. She was the first black woman to be elected mayor of a major Southern city, and the was Atlanta's 4th black mayor. Franklin announced an initiative called "Clean Water Atlanta" to address the problem and begin improving the city's sewer system, and was lauded for efforts to make the City of Atlanta "green." Under Franklin's leadership Atlanta went from having one of the lowest percentages of LEED certified buildings to one of the highest. She currently serves as a member on the board of directors for both Delta Air Lines and Mueller Water Products.

Understand Her Legacy
Explore the Chattahoochee, and marvel at why Atlanta's known as "The City in the Trees." Most Atlantans live within striking distance to one of the Chattahoochee’s neighboring city parks or National Recreation Areas. And while the rest of Atlanta continues to sizzle well into autumn, the Chattahoochee stays a frigid temperature year-round.

West Palisades Trail
3444 Cobb Pkwy.
Vinings
Online: tinybeans.go-vip.net

Coretta Scott King

Notable as the widow of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Coretta Scott King has created an enormous legacy of her own. She was a leader for the civil rights movement, taking on the leadership of the struggle for racial equality herself after her husband's assassination. She was an activist in the Women's Movement, LGBT progress, and was an outspoken opponent of apartheid. She also founded the King Center and succeeded in making her late husband's birthday a national holiday.

Explore Her Legacy
From the King Center to Ebenezer Baptist Church, Atlanta is full of places to learn about Black history. Find out how many of Atlanta's most well-known centers for Black culture and history were impacted by King as you explore Atlanta through a new lens. Start at the MLK National Historic Park.

450 Auburn Ave., NE
Atlanta, Ga
404-331-5190
Online: nps.gov

Anne Rivers Siddons

Born in Atlanta in 1936, Siddons returned home after earning her bachelor’s degree at Auburn University. Rejecting her parents’ expectation that she would teach school, Siddons instead wrote about the political and social changes she witnessed in the “City Too Busy to Hate,” including one of her most famed pieces for Atlanta magazine: “Maid in Atlanta.” She went on to write over a dozen bestselling books, and her work challenged the stereotypes of the ‘Old South’ and gave readers strong, female characters who weren’t afraid to challenge social norms.

Get to Know Her
If you're going to start anywhere, start with her "Maid in Atlanta" article for Atlanta magazine. Then, graduate to her first bestselling book, "Heartbreak Hotel." After that, you can pretty much throw a dart at her publication list and land on a good one. Pack a picnic and a blanket and spend an afternoon getting to know her through her writing at one of these perfect picnic spots around town.

Alana Shepherd

Alana Shepherd and her family co-founded Shepherd Center in Atlanta in 1975 to treat spinal cord injury after her son, James, sustained a paralyzing spinal injury in 1973. Frustrated by the lack of state-of-the-art rehabilitation care in the southeastern United States, the family galvanized support among the Atlanta community to open a specialty facility. Alana also recognized early on that she had to help change the community to which patients would return so these individuals would be accepted and could, once again, assume their place in society. Through the years, Shepherd Center has grown from a six-bed unit to a world-renowned, 152-bed rehabilitation hospital specializing in medical treatment, research and rehabilitation for people with spinal cord injury, brain injury and other neurological conditions.

Walk in Her Shoes
Shepherd's advocacy for accessibility resulted in the addition of lifts to Atlanta’s MARTA bus system and in making Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport one of the country’s most accessible airports. The next time you're on MARTA or chasing your toddler through Atlanta's airport, remember her!

Dorothy Lee Bolden

In 1968 Dorothy Bolden transformed domestic workers’ rights by founding the National Domestic Worker’s Union of America (NDWUA). Her efforts to organize domestic workers so that they might gain better wages, better conditions, and respect for their profession came from 40 years of domestic work herself. Bolden also understood the power of the ballot and made registration and voting a requirement for the members of the NDWUA. She organized a boycott of Atlanta schools to protest the school board’s reluctance to improve the quality of education for Black students, and worked with Dr. Martin Luther King and other civil rights leader to confront police brutality, especially in her Atlanta neighborhood, Vine City.

Follow in Her Footsteps
Even as a child, Bolden told of waking at 4 a.m. to get on a bus at 6 a.m., to arrive at work by 8 a.m. and manage the household of a family that relied on her entirely for all aspects of household management—only to return home at 6 p.m. to do it all again, for her family. In her honor, imagine doing all the things that need to be done in a day to keep your family on track... only twice.

Ella Josephine Baker

Ella Josephine Baker was a civil rights and human rights activist, who often worked behind-the-scenes alongside some of the most noted civil rights leaders of the 20th century, including W. E. B. Du Bois, Thurgood Marshall, A. Philip Randolph, and Martin Luther King Jr. She had a huge impact on the leadership of the movement by mentoring many emerging activists, such as Diane Nash, Stokely Carmichael, Rosa Parks, and Bob Moses—whom she first mentored as leaders in the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC). Baker has been called "one of the most important American leaders of the twentieth century and perhaps the most influential woman in the civil rights movement."

Take a Closer Look
Find the Student Movement Marker at the former site of Yates & Milton Drug Store, which is now the Student Center on the campus of Clark Atlanta University. You can find a Georgia Historical Society marker that tells the story of the Atlanta Student Movement, which began when three Morehouse College students—Lonnie King, Joseph Pierce and Julian Bond—formed the Committee on the Appeal for Human Rights and involved all the historically black institutions of the Atlanta University.

Corner of James P. Brawley Dr. SW & Atlanta Student Movement Blvd.
Atlanta GA 30314

Featured photo via iStock.

—Shelley Massey

 

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LeVar Burton Urges Kids to ‘Read Banned Books!’

by Tinybeans Team

Former Reading Rainbow host LeVar Burton appeared on The Daily Show With Trevor Noah on Tuesday and attempted to read a few children’s books to his viewers, but every book he chose is banned in school districts or libraries across the country. And he’s got things to say about that.

Rosa by poet, activist, and educator Nikki Giovanni, written as a tribute to Rosa Parks and her legacy, “…is banned because reading about segregation is divisive,” Burton says.

And Tango Makes Three by Peter Parnell and Justin Richardson “…is also banned because of sexual perversion, which is weird because there’s no sex in the book at all. Y’all, they adopted the baby.” Burton explains that the book—which the American Library Association notes was most challenged book by parents for three consecutive years—is “about two penguins and their little baby.”

And then there’s Dr. Seuss’ Hop on Pop, which in 2014 was requested by the Toronto Public Library to be banned for “encourag[ing] children to use violence against their fathers.” Dr. Seuss has since been challenged for portraying characters in racist and anti-semitic depictions.

Burton drove his frustration at implored viewers and kids to keep reading. “Read the books they don’t want you to—that’s where the good stuff is. Read banned books!” The American Library Association has tracked hundreds of book challenges across the country, and the New York Times reports that books about race and racial identity are at the top of the list.

During Tuesday’s episode of The Daily Show, Noah called the book banning a “new culture war,” citing members in a Virginia school district who want to burn books. “We’re living in 2022. We shouldn’t be burning books.”

Duh. Really, what else can we say? Read the books—all the books—and especially the ones that are banned.

—Shelley Massey

 

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10 Simple Things Parents & Kids Can Do to Help the Climate Crisis

By Sara Mateos-Aparicio

Photo: Lingokids

The academic journal, Science, recently published a study that shows children today will live through three times as many climate disasters as their grandparents. With people around the world concerned about the current climate crisis, it’s more important than ever to have talks with your children about what global warming is and how to slow it down.

Helping Kids Understand the Climate Emergency
How do we help our children learn that they can take part in helping slow down climate change? We need to emphasize that small actions can lead to big changes.

First, it’s important to explain to them what climate change is and how it can negatively impact the earth, animals, plants, and our daily lives. This isn’t the easiest thing to do, since even as adults, we struggle to understand what climate change and global warming truly means. Conversations about energy sources and carbon dioxide emissions can be overwhelming to children. Instead, we need to talk about concepts and ideas that are familiar and relatable.

For example, you can talk about global warming in relation to how it affects polar bears. The glacial areas where polar bears live are melting away and getting too warm, making it harder for them to thrive. (The temperature has increased 1.9ºF in the past 100 years, according to NASA, and it will be 8.6ºF hotter by 2100.)

Another example is talking about the rise of ocean waters from the melting ice, which can affect coastal areas where people live or go on vacation. Or pollution occuring in the ocean because of people not recycling is another topic that can be talked about. There is so much trash in the oceans that it is making the animals and plants that live in it get sick. If we recycle, it can help with the amount of trash that enters our oceans.

There are lots of books that can help explain climate change and what we all can do to help. For example: Old Enough to Save the Planet or The Story of Climate Change are great options. You can also teach your children about young environmental activists like Greta Thunberg, who started the international movement #fridaysforfuture.

10 Steps Children and Their Parents Can Do to Help the Environment

Modeling behavior is key. Be the example to your children and show them one person can make a big difference with these easy to do examples:

  1. Turn off computers, televisions, and other devices when not in use.

  2. Save water by taking shorter showers and turning off the water when brushing your teeth.

  3. Use reusable food containers and water bottles at school instead of plastic ones that are used once and thrown away. Let your kids pick out their own special containers and bottles to pack for school.

  4. Turn off the lights after leaving a room. Open a window in the morning to let in colder air instead of turning on the a/c. During colder months, wear warmer clothing and pajamas instead of turning up the heater. Power plants emit a lot of air pollution, so cutting back our energy usage is important.

  5. Recycle. Make it a fun activity for kids by having different colored bins for the different items and make it part of their daily activities.

  6. Reuse. Find items in your recycling bins that can be repurposed for crafts or imaginative play.

  7. Walk or ride a bike instead of driving. It’s a great way to save on gas, get exercise and spend time as a family.

  8. Create a vegetable garden together to help everyone be more excited to eat more vegetables and less meat. #meatlessMonday

  9. Teach them to always put their trash in trash cans or recycling bins. Go for a walk in a neighborhood park or beach and pick up any trash you see! Make it a fun competition and see who can collect the most!

  10. Use cold water when washing laundry and hang dry your clothes instead of using the dryer to save energy.

Encourage your children to have these conversations with their classmates and teachers. Have them ask their teacher what they can do at school to help make it part of their daily activities. Always emphasize and praise that their small contributions can lead to big changes that are beneficial for our world.

How Can Lingokids Help Your Kids Understand the Climate Catastrophe
At Lingokids, we firmly believe that children learn by example. We want to make a difference and help you raise the children of the future. For example: improving upon their critical thinking about important issues like climate change or their creativity when it comes to thinking about how they can help their neighborhoods.

At Lingokids you can find entire in-game lessons that are focused on protecting the earth. Your child can enjoy games, songs, and traceables while learning about recycling and sustainable habits. Throughout the app, they can also learn about animals and ecosystems all over the world, from the North Pole to tropical rainforests.

By expanding children’s awareness of these environments at an early age, we can set the stage for conversations and then actions around protecting endangered animals and nature conservation.

Sara Mateos-Aparicio
Tinybeans Voices Contributor

Sara Mateos-Aparicio is the Communications Manager at Lingokids, an early childhood education platform. Sara studied Journalism in Madrid, writing for years for radio stations and print magazines. Sara has worked for a variety of education startups, most recently joining Lingokids in 2019 to lead their communications initiatives.

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Portland-Inspired Halloween Costumes Your Kids Will Love

by Levi Rogers

Halloween is almost here! While things are not quite back to normal regarding large gatherings and trick-or-treating, costumes and (especially one with masks!) are still a great way to have some fun with all your fall activities. Have a fun time dressing up around the house or wherever your Halloween and Fall adventures take you with these Portland, Oregon-themed costumes. Remember to practice social distancing but stay together as a pod, you never know what kind of donuts or lumberjacks you might find lurking around these October PDX streets!

Lumberjack or Timber Joey

Tanalee Youngblood via Unsplash

The modern state of Oregon was in many ways built on sawmills, timber, and the logging industry. While the industry was perhaps rightly criticized for its clear cutting of old growth forests in the past, the myth of the lumberjack and our abundance of trees remains one of the enduring symbols of  the state of Oregon. The lumberjack was the mythical cowboy-esque persona of this era and personified in years past by the likes of Paul Bunyan and today by people like Timber Joey, the Portland Timbers “Mascot” who saws off a ring of wood from a tree every time the Timbers score a goal. Conversely, if you’re against the very idea of this, consider going as a tree hugger. The spirit of protest and demonstration is still alive and well in Oregon.

Rain Cloud & Rainbow

This could possibly be the most Portland costume of all time, and it’s a classic that will never go out of style. Get the whole family in on it with individual cloud or raindrop costumes and then designate someone to carry or be a rainbow! You can buy costumes online or get crafty and creative. With a little cotton, colored paper and glue, you’ll have the cutest rainstorm in town.

Blazers or Timbers Fan

Portland loves its Blazers and Timbers. Any real Timbers fan has enough gear to outfit the entire army, so put it to good use! You can make it interactive with pretend axe-chopping your way up and down the street. Or just get your brand new babe an adorable onesie and you’ll have all of the ghosts and ghouls gathered to get a peak.

Little Hippie

Portland may be known for some of its hipster qualities. But there was a time when weirdoes and hippies filled our streets. Evoke the classic Portland hippie in the days of flower power, jam bands, and bell bottoms. Our local Good Will and classic vintage stores are packed with everything that you need. There is no shortage of vintage needs here in Portland! Online shops are also a COVID-safe go-to if you can’t pull some pieces out of the back of your own closet. 

Donut or Biscuit

Portlanders love their donuts! There are plenty of donut outfits you can purchase online. You could even DIY this one at home with some felt. Go all VooDoo and stick real cereal to the costume! Or, if you’re more of a savory person, celebrate your love for Portland’s own Pine State Biscuits. Bonus points for some gravy and fried chicken on top.

Food Truck or Chef

Photo by Amina Filkins from Pexels

Dress up as an ode to your favorite food cart–if your little one is in a stroller, you’ve got a rolling costume! DIY some local favorites like Khao Man Gai, The Grilled Cheese Bus, or others. Or, if you’re a foodie family who watched Top Chef Portland, dress up like your favorite Top chef judge or contestant.

Sasquatch

The mythical Sasquatch usually stays out of view, but this Halloween he just might make an appearance. After 2020, who knows what could happen! Get ready to greet him with your very own sasquatch costume to welcome him to the neighborhood. Or perhaps all the isolation has finally goteen to Sasquatch and he found himself trapped in the world’s only Sasquatch trap, located in Siskiyou National Forest.

Pizza

Portlanders love their pizza. According to one author, Portland even has the best pizza in the country! Dress up like your favorite slice or restaurant and watch out for those who try to eat you! 

Put A Bird On It

This might be the easiest idea for a Portland costume ever! Throw it back to 2011 with a Portlandia-inspired costume—just put a bird on it! Other ideas might include goths, street punks, butchers, and picklers! 

—Levi Rogers

featured image via pexels

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Listen for Lizzo, Leslie Odom Jr. & Many More Stars in the Upcoming “Proud Family” Reboot

by Sarah Shebek

The Proud Family is back with some big names! Disney has announced that huge range of celebs will appear on the The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder, scheduled to celebrate its 20th anniversary with a launch in 2022.

Listen for the guest starring voice cast, including Lizzo, Chance the Rapper, Lil Nas X, Normani, Leslie Odom Jr. (Hamilton), Tiffany Haddish (Like a Boss), Lena Waithe (Master of None), Anthony Anderson (Black-ish), Gabrielle Union (L.A.’s Finest) and many more! That’s in addition to recently announced regular cast members Billy Porter as Randall Leibowitz-Jenkins and Zachary Quinto as Barry Leibowitz-Jenkins.

You might remember the original show from the early ‘2000s, which featured Penny Proud humorously navigating the world of junior high, with support from her wacky family. The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder will pick up this storyline and many of the original cast members will reprise their voice roles from the first series.

The new show is currently in the works for a launch next year on Disney+. It has some star power in the production department too! Bruce W. Smith (The Princess and the Frog) and Ralph Farquhar (Moesha) are executive producers and both led the original series. You’ll recognize the artwork courtesy of Eastwood Wong, who also worked on Carmen Sandiego.

If you need to brush up on your Proud Family knowledge before the new season comes out, you can watch both seasons of the original show on Disney+. And keep watching for the announcement of the official premiere date for this new series!

—Sarah Shebek

All images courtesy of Disney

 

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Here’s How to Take Your Child to Work In 2021

by Erica Loop

While this last year for many parents has meant taking kids “to work” pretty much every day thanks to school and work from home, you might find yourself laughing at the idea of celebrating this day. But hear us out!

This year, Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day is going virtual for 2021 and is adapting to current times by creating a virtual career day for parents and kids to experience together. They’re hosting an online event geared toward elementary and middle-school-aged kids. Each program will include keynote speeches, interactive polls, video programming that focuses on diversity and inclusion, and an up-close look into more than 15 workplaces from industries such as the Arts, STEM, Health Sciences, Marketing, and Business.

photo: iStock

Whether you currently work from home, are back in the office in a hybrid model, or are a full-time in-person employee, this special day is a way to celebrate your career with your child. Starting in 1993 daughters and sons have enjoyed learning more about what their parents do for a living. To carry on the excitement of this career-centric day, the Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Foundation is transforming the previously all in-person events to cyber fun.

Tune in to the virtual event on Thursday, Apr. 22, 2021 at DaughtersAndSonsToWork.org. All participants should register before the event begins. Visit the Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Foundation website here to register.

Catch the broadcast at one of two times—either 9:00 a.m. ET or 12:00 p.m. ET. Entrepreneur and author Ellen Langas will host the 9:00 a.m. event, along with her daughters Stephanie and Veronica Campbell. Activist and icon Gloria Steinem will also make a special appearance, answering questions gathered from children before the event day. Courtney Carson, beauty and lifestyle TV personality, will host the 12:00 program. Gitanjali Rao, TIME Magazine’s first Kid of the Year will also make a special appearance.

Visit the Take Daughters and Sons to Work Foundation’s website to get an Activity Passport and an Activity Guide for parents and teachers.

—Erica Loop

Featured photo: Ketut Subiyanto via Pexels

 

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Eleanor Roosevelt Is Newest Barbie Doll in Inspiring Women Line

by Karly Wood

Monday Mar. 8 is International Women’s Day and there is plenty to celebrate. In honor of the big day, Mattel has announced the newest doll to join the Inspiring Women series and it’s none other than First Lady of the United States, UN Spokesperson and human rights activist, Eleanor Roosevelt.

The Barbie Inspiring Women Series is all about showcasing historical and present-day role models who’ve made it possible for girls of today to reach their dreams. Roosevelt was known as the “First Lady of the World” for her efforts and dedication surrounding humanitarian efforts and was a champion on the topics of civil and economic rights.

The Eleanor Roosevelt doll joins those launched over the past year: Dr. Maya Angelou, Billie Jean King, Ella Fitzgerald, Florence Nightingale, Susan B. Anthony, Amelia Earhart, Katherine Johnson, Frida Kahlo, Rosa Parks and Sally Ride. The Inspiring Women doll can now be purchased at retailers ($29.99) nationwide beginning today, Mar. 3.

As if that wasn’t exciting enough, Mattel has also launched the “You Can Be Anything Virtual Series” which connects fans of Barbie with role models. The series starts Sat. Mar. 6 at 10:00 a.m. PST and will stream on Barbie’s Facebook and YouTube channels.

The series will consist of inspiring, interactive, and educational 15-30 minute live streams with female leaders and influencers such as Yara Shahidi and Adwoa Aboah, with new content airing weekly on Saturdays. The themes include:

      • Saturday, March 6th: Your Voice
      • Saturday, March 13th: Music & Dance
      • Saturday, March 20th: STEAM
      • Saturday, March 27th: Sports & Wellness

––Karly Wood

photos: Mattel

 

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American Girl Launches New Platform to Inspire Changemakers in a Big Way

by Karly Wood

It can be challenging to navigate the world, but American Girl is stepping up in a big way to help girls grow up with character and confidence. The brand has just launched an important new resource you won’t want to miss.

Conversations for Change is a digital platform that highlights female trailblazers, sharing their stories to bring about respect, equality, empathy and inspiration. Throughout 2021, American Girl’s new series will highlight videos, letters, and advice from young leaders making the world better.

The first episode of the new series is called 4 Generations of Black Voices and features Marley Dias, a youth activist and author, Paris Williams and mom Alicia Marshall of Paris Cares Foundation and writer and American Girl author Denise Lewis Patrick. 

Future episodes will include Climate Change this April, Goals this summer and Breaking Barrier this fall. To continue sharing its message, American Girl has also made its stories written by Black women and featuring Black heroines available to download on its free online library the country.

“For 35 years, American Girl has created timeless stories and diverse characters who show girls how to change the world with courage, resilience, and kindness,” said Jamie Cygielman, General Manager of American Girl. “Through this new platform, we’re excited to give real girls the opportunity to share how their stories—and actions—are sparking meaningful conversations and positive change. We hope these stories inspire others to get involved and make a difference.”

––Karly Wood

Feature photo: Marley Dias

 

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Young Black Female Leaders You Should Be Following

By Joann Suen & Sapna Satagopan

February is Black History Month, a time to remember, recognize, honor, and reflect on the achievements of Black Americans. We’re talking about history-defining people like Harriet Tubman, a slave who led other slaves to freedom through the Underground Railroad; Martin Luther King, Jr. and Rosa Parks, who fought for equality in America; and Barack Obama, the first Black president of the United States.

Throughout the month of February, we’ll be sharing stories about Black leaders who’ve broken barriers, fought for equal rights, and made significant impacts throughout the history of the United States. This week, we begin with five young Black female leaders changing the world and making history.

1. Amanda Gorman (Poet, Author & Activist)
Amanda Gorman is a twenty-two-year-old poet whose poems touch upon race, feminism, and oppression. In 2017, Amanda Gorman became the first US National Youth Laureate—a title that’s given to one person who has shown mastery of poetry and/or the spoken word and advocates for social justice. In 2021, she recited an original poem at the US presidential inauguration, becoming the youngest-known person ever to achieve this. Her poem, “The Hill We Climb,” painted both the pain of the past and hope for the future. —By the Library of Congress, LOC, Public Domain

2. Mari Copeny (Clean Water Activist & Women’s March Ambassador)
When she was just eight years old, she wrote to then-president Barack Obama about the toxic water that was running through the pipes of her city, Flint, Michigan. In her letter, she asked that President Obama visit her city and lift people’s spirits. The president did visit and eventually declared a state of emergency for the toxic water crisis in Flint. Mari has continued to fight for clean water and has raised funds to support kids in need across the country. —Created by Hillel Steinberg via @Flickr CC by 2.0

3. Naomi Wadler (Anti-Gun Activist)
In 2018, Naomi Wadler led an eighteen-minute walkout at her elementary school in support of the March For Our Lives protests that were happening around the country. This protest represented the seventeen victims of the Parkland school shooting and the one African American girl who was a victim of gun violence at her school in Alabama. She later spoke in front of a massive crowd at the March For Our Lives rally In Washington, DC, and asked the country to remember the Black women and girls who are victims of gun violence, but who are often left out of newspapers. —Naomi WadlerTribeca Disruptive Innovation, CC BY-SA 3.0  via Wikimedia Commons

4. Marley Dias (Author & Activist)
In 2015, Marley Dias founded the campaign #1000BlackGirlBooks because she couldn’t find books where the main character looked like her. That had to change. She set up a book drive and a goal of collecting one thousand books where the main protagonist was female and Black. Since then, she’s expanded her efforts internationally and has written books herself. —Marley Dias by WBLS 107.5 NYC, CC by 3.0

5. Yara Shahidi (Actress & Activist)
Yara Shahidi may be a household name because of her recurring role on Black-ish and Grown-ish, but it’s her time away from the set that’s perhaps propelled her into an even bigger spotlight. From getting young people out to vote through her Eighteen x 18 initiative or speaking out on social justice issues, she’s using her star power to make a difference. —Yara Shahidi ColliderVideo, CC by 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

 

This post originally appeared on Xyza: News for Kids.
Photo: Wikimedia commons
Joann Suen & Sapna Satagopan
Tinybeans Voices Contributor

We're two perfectly imperfect moms who have five very different kids between the two of us. We believe that topics in news are a fantastic way to spark conversations in families. That's why we started the Dinner Table Conversation series here at Xyza: News for Kids. Won't you join us in the conversation? 

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Fine Print: Children’s Books by Georgia Authors

by Phebe Wahl

The winter is the perfect time to cozy up to a little local lit with your kiddos by one of the following authors who hails from our home state. From the familiar Pete the Cat to the lesser known Listening Me, these books are awesome, no matter where you’re reading them. We just think it’s really cool that the authors have spent their fair share of time traveling Peachtree. Keep reading for our favorite children’s books by local authors, below.

Lift as You Climb by Patricia Hruby Powell & R Gregory Christie

Caldecott Honor winner—and Atlantan—R. Gregory Christie’s powerful pictures pair with the narrative of Patricia Hruby Powell in this children's book about the civil rights activist Ella Baker. Long before the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 60s, Ella Baker worked to lift others up by fighting racial injustice and empowering poor African Americans to stand up for their rights. Her dedication and grassroots work in many communities made her a valuable ally for leaders like Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and she has been ranked as one of the most influential women in the civil rights movement. In the 1960s she worked to register voters and organize sit-ins, and she became a teacher and mentor to many young activists.

Available for $11.79 on Amazon.

Holiday! by Natalie Nelson

Have you ever thought how it must feel to be the day that follows a holiday? Atlantan Natalie Nelson’s ingenious characterizations of the days of the week will delight readers in this story that pokes fun at how set in our ways we can be and how we might instead choose to be open to change and embrace the unexpected.

Available for $15.80 on Amazon.

Dog Days: The Carver Chronicles by Karen English and Laura Freeman

Originally from New York but currently living in Atlanta, illustrator Laura Freeman knows a thing or two about moves, and making new friends, and learning how new places work—just like the main character in The Carver Chronicles. This series starts as a young boy moves to a new school, where everything that could possibly go wrong seems to do just that. 

Available for $6.99 on Amazon.

Thread of Love by Kabir and Surishtha Sehgal

This mother-son duo collaborate to bring colorful stories about from India alive on the pages of children's books. In Thread of Love, readers learn about the Indian festival of Raksha Bandhan—a celebration of the special lifelong relationship between brothers and sisters—in a literary reinterpretation of the song Frère Jacques (Are You Sleeping). 

Available for $10.39 on Amazon. 

Hands Up! by Breanna J. McDaniel

This picture book by Atlanta author McDaniel celebrates Black joy by reclaiming a charged phrase and showing readers how resistance can be part of their everyday lives. In it, a young Black girl lifts her baby hands up to greet the sun, reaches her hands up for a book on a high shelf, and raises her hands up in praise at a church service. She stretches her hands up high like a plane’s wings and whizzes down a hill so fast on her bike with her hands way up. As she grows, she lives through everyday moments of joy, love, and sadness. And when she gets a little older, she joins together with her family and her community in a protest march, where they lift their hands up together in resistance and strength.

Available for $8.89 on Amazon.

Bilal Cooks Daal by Aisha Saeed

What six-year-old doesn't wrestle with patience and sharing? This Kirkus Reviews Best Picture Book of 2019 and Asian/Pacific American Award Winner for Literature Honor Book in 2019 explores patience, teamwork, community, and sharing through the eyes of six-year-old Bilal. He's excited to help his dad make his favorite food of all-time—daal—but the slow-cooked lentil dish from South Asia requires lots of ingredients and a whole lot of waiting.

Available for $17.69 on Amazon.

The King of Too Many Things by Laurel Snyder

When you can have everything you want, it's easy to get lost in what you have. This story about a young King Jasper who can order his wizard to conjure up anything at all is a modern fairy tale that shows how always wanting more can ultimately lead to less...happiness, that is.

Available for $12.98 on Amazon.

Featured image via iStock.

—Shelley Massey

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