International Literacy Day is an annual worldwide event acknowledged on September 8th that highlights the importance of literacy as a human right.
According to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), which founded International Literacy Day in 1967, there are approximately 771 million people around the world who are illiterate. Additionally, a 2019 report from the U.S. Department of Education’s National Center for Education Statistics found that 23 percent of Black adults were considered to have low levels of English literacy — a problem that can be traced back to Jim Crow laws and connected to the school-to-prison pipeline.
“Transforming Literacy Learning Spaces” is this year’s theme for International Literacy Day, which will be “an opportunity to rethink the fundamental importance of literacy learning spaces to build resilience and ensure quality, equitable and inclusive education for all.” Through local mutual aid projects and community-oriented initiatives, Black people have been shifting literacy education for decades by increasing access to books and literary resources, hosting free book discussions and workshops, and actively encouraging folks to read as a form of empowerment, joy and liberation.
In honor of this year’s theme and annual event, here are five Black folks to know who are transforming literacy learning spaces online and in their local communities.
01
Trae Higgs – Blk Book Swap
Blk Book Swap is an independent book lending initiative and inclusive pop-up event that aims to “get books off of shelves and into readers hands.” As the name suggests, this is done through community book swaps, where people can exchange up to three books primarily by Black, Indigenous, Latinx and POC authors.
The initiative originally started as a mail-only swap and has since grown into an in-person project that has hosted more than a dozen events throughout the past year. Higgs often connects with her growing social media following and online community through relatable book memes and reels, and she encourages folks to share book recommendations with each other and center BIPOC authors in their own reading lists.
Blk Book Swap Instagram
02
Noëlle Santos – The Lit. Bar
Founded by Afro-Latina venture activist Noëlle Santos, The Lit. Bar is an independent bookstore and wine bar located in the South Bronx, where folks can gather to read a curated selection of books that reflect the local community, and participate in book launches, author talks and signings, and more.
The idea was first conceptualized in 2014. The Bronx is home to about 1.4 million people and several colleges, but for many years prior to The Lit. Bar’s opening in 2019, there were no bookstores throughout the entire borough. Today, Santos’s business is the only brick and mortar bookstore in the community. She hopes to show the world that “the Bronx is no longer burning… except with the desire to read.”
The Lit. Bar Instagram
03
Fayola – Reading For Black Lives
Created by Fayola during the 2020 racial uprisings, Reading For Black Lives (R4BL) is a mutual aid project that works to give free books and reading resources to Black community members, while also recognizing and uplifting individuals of color who are impacted by white supremacy and colonization. This is done through book pop-ups, community book fairs and the Black Books Fund, which provides books by Black authors, directly from Black bookstores, to Black folks free of cost.
“This project is an ongoing series of book lists that address numerous different topics related to Blackness, including but not limited to queer history, womanism and Black feminisms, prison abolition, medical racism and the school-to-prison pipeline,” Fayola wrote on their website. “This project only features Black authors, as we are the experts on our own experiences. At a time when people are turning to reading as a form of self care or as an opportunity for understanding anti-racist movements, providing resources feels like a sustainable way to support this work.”
04
Forrest Evans – Your Favorite Librarian
This Atlanta-based librarian, published poet and self-proclaimed “blerd” (Black nerd) is passionate about circulating Black and queer literature and resources, as well as celebrating the joy of reading. From Black comics and children’s books, to the latest up-and-coming Black and QPOC novels, she regularly recommends her current favorite must-reads to her growing online community. In Favorite Librarian, the Podcast, Evans shares her personal experiences and insights on all-things related to Black and queer literature as she guides listeners along their reading journey and touches on important book-related topics.
Evans believes “Black and Brown voices all around the world complete The Black Experience, AND Queer history is beautiful.” Her social media platform is a welcoming space for curious readers alike. One of her affirming mottos is: “You are not alone. There is a book out there for you.”
05
OlaRonke Akinmowo – The Free Black Women’s Library
The Free Black Women’s Library is a Black feminist literary social art project and book collection that centers the brilliant work and creativity of Black women, femmes and non-binary authors. For the past six years, TFBWL has functioned as a mobile library and pop-up experience at community centers, galleries, book festivals and various other NYC-based events where people can come to trade books by Black women.
Akinmowo, the project’s founder and organizer, recently opened the Reading Room, an in-person resource and literary hub where folks from the local Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn community and beyond can come to connect with other book lovers and creatives. The Reading Room hosts TFBWL’s free monthly book club, writing workshops, performances, film screenings, community conversations and more. The social art project has amassed a diverse collection of more than 4,000 books and has become a safe space for people to gather, learn, create and read together.
