Kelsey Harrelson and Gant Renner
A busy summer is on the horizon at Bookmarks, a non-profit bookstore in downtown Winston-Salem, with its summer “Book with Purpose” program beginning May 14th.
The program aims to unite the community through book discussions about anti-racism, for all ages, with events such as book club meetings, author conversations, and panel discussions. These events will likely be in a hybrid format with both virtual and in-person opportunities.
The Book with Purpose program centers around four books: Stamped From The Beginning, Stamped: Racism, Antiracism and You, Stamped (For Kids), and Antiracist Baby. Stamped (For Kids) will be released on May 11th, just three days before the program’s launch.
One of the hopes of the program is that the events will invite intergenerational dialogue. “It’s important that we share experiences, that we listen to each other’s experiences,” said Jamie Rogers Southern, the Interim Director of Bookmarks. “I think listening to stories and hearing some of the hard stories from the past are really important to help everyone grow.”
In Stamped From the Beginning, author Ibram X. Kendi chronicles the story of anti-Black racist ideas and their staggering power over the course of American history. The other three books are reimagined versions of Stamped From the Beginning, written with a target age group in mind – Stamped From the Beginning for adults, Stamped: Antiracism and You for ages 12+, Stamped (For Kids) for ages 6-10, and Antiracist Baby for ages under 6. Antiracist Baby translates in-depth discussions from the other three books into nine easy steps for building a more equitable world.
This program is unique because of its ability to reach a wide age range of readers. Typically, a one-read program cuts out younger readers, said Rogers Southern. “Having this exact framework that’s covered in Stamped from the Beginning that’s translated to different ages is really, I think, a brilliant idea and something that’s not done enough.”
A total of 2,313 books will be distributed throughout the Winston-Salem Forsyth County Schools system, and every school in the county will receive books. Additionally, each of the ten branches of the Forsyth County Library will receive three copies of each book.
Many other groups in the community are set to be involved with the program and will receive copies of the books. Ten days before the launch, Bookmarks received two anonymous donations of $10,000 each for a $20,000 matching challenge to help reach the fundraising goal. “The enthusiasm from the community has been very great… [we are] really excited that so many people believe in it before we officially launch,” Rogers Southern said.
One of the organizations that will participate in the initiative is the Hispanic League, which has been in partnership with Bookmarks for 17 years, according to Executive Director Mari Jo Turner. The Hispanic League will distribute books into their Middle School Achievers Program, which serves ESL students at ten middle schools. Books will also be distributed to the YMCA Latino Achievers Program, which is active at twelve high schools in the area.
The Hispanic League, which has provided over 1.3 million dollars worth of scholarships to area students since 2000, plans to offer a copy to each of the 50 scholarship recipients in 2021. Turner said that she thinks that the program will have a positive effect on the area.
“This initiative will help build bridges and build community in Winston-Salem, which is something that this city can benefit from,” Turner said.
April Reich, a Black Lives Matter activist, said that getting these books into the hands of children will have a positive impact, and she believes that a literature-based initiative can have a powerful impact in the fight against racism.
“It’s very important to educate kids about the factor of racism in our lives, and literature can help us bring awareness to these issues by educating people on the past so that we can move forward as a society,” Reich said.
