Skip to main content
Richland Library logo
  • Events
  • Locations
  • Contact Us
  • Blog
Give

Social Media Menu

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • LinkedIn
Library Policies© 2023 Richland Library, Richland County, South Carolina
Richland Library logo
  • Events
  • Locations
  • Contact Us
  • Blog
Forgot your card number?
Forgot your PIN?
  • Reset your password

Get A Library Card

  • Print Documents
  • Reserve a Room
  • Social Work
  • Career Services
  • Community Resources
  • Library of Things
  • View All Services
  • Browse free online tools for researching and learning.
  • Most Popular
  • Articles, Journals & Newspapers
  • Books & Literature
  • Business & Careers
  • Children
  • En Español
  • Genealogy & Local History
  • View All Research Categories
  • Browse Staff Picks
  • Get a Recommendation
  • Read Our Blog
  • About Us
  • Work With Us
  • Our Team
  • Locations
  • Our Work
  • Equity, Diversity & Inclusion
  • Library Policies
  • Friends and Foundation
  • Contact Us

Breadcrumb

  • Home  
  • Blog  
  • Stamped: This is Not a History Book
BLOG

Stamped: This is Not a History Book

  • Jocelyn T.
  • Monday, February 15, 2021
Share:
Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on LinkedIn

"This is NOT a history book." - Jason Reynolds

Dr. Ibram X. Kendi's Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America has been adapted for teen readers by legendary Jason Reynolds and is today's leading book on racism and antiracism in America for young people. Stamped: Racism, Antiracism and You gives teens the tools to recognize racist ideas, where they come from and how to stamp them out. 

"This is not a history book...." There's so much packed in that one profound statement that Jason Reynolds reiterates at the beginning of Stamped: Antriracism, Racism, and You by Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi. Simply put, it means that this book is not another boring book full of whitewashed history that will bore teens to sleep. Another possible meaning is that this book is different....It's filled with the other voices....the marginalized voices that have not always been heard in many of the published textbooks teens are regularly told to read. One other meaning is that the contents of this book are not truly history....

Wait. What does that mean? How could a book about moments in history and historical figures not be about HISTORY? Could it possibly because much of history is still alive today.....or, at least, the echoes of people of the past are still very much present today?

That's a big, almost abstract idea, however, unfortunately, it is the reality. Despite what many might say, the remnants of the past can clearly be seen today, due to deeply-rooted systemic racism and the racist and biased behavior of some of our peers. While it's common to turn on the tv or read the news and see headline after headline about racial injustice, adults need to remember and understand that younger generations are also being affected and have questions and thoughts about racism, antiracism, white privilege, racial bias, and more.

Teens deserve to have a voice and a space where they can safely examine the world, identify their own feelings and concerns, and determine how they hope to combat racial injustice. Stamped: Antiracism, Racism, and You was not written with just history and education in mind, but it was primarily written to show teens that they are heard, that they matter, and that the hope for a future filled with equality and justice is always of importance.

Authors Ibram X. Kendi and Jason Reynolds discuss how and why they joined forces to write Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You.

If you are inspired to learn more or make a difference, take part in these important conversations centering race, equity and inclusion.  Find more resources about race, equity and inclusion, here.

Author

Jocelyn T.

Children's Librarian

Tags
Book Recommendations
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
Learning Activities for Teens
Audience
Parents
Teens (12-18 years)
 2

Related Blog Posts

Image
Benedict College Commencement grads
Blog
 1
A Look at Richland County's HBCUs
Image
Kanopy Short Films-Blog covers
Blog
 1
7 Shorts Films to Watch On Kanopy
Image
Cover of My Bollywood Dream, We Still Belong, and Julie and the Mango Tree
Blog
Did You Miss It? | August 2023 Releases

Footer Menu

  • About
  • Work With Us
  • Blog
Library Policies© 2023 Richland Library, Richland County, South Carolina
Give

Social Media Menu

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • LinkedIn