The Black Bookshelf Project Ltd.

The Cause

The Black Bookshelf Project (TBBP) is a grassroots organization started by 3 visibly racialized mothers whose mission is to combat the systemic and structural racism being experienced by racialized children. TBBP’s mission is to remove barriers to participation by providing communities with easy access to resources that illuminate anti-racist concepts and amplify BIPOC voices.

TBBP’s mission is to equip children, youth, families and organizations with the knowledge and tools they need to increase each community member’s capacity to understand race and racism in such a way that catalyzes all who interact with the resources we will provide into informed personal and public anti-racist action. TBBP will do this by creating, consolidating, providing and liaising community organizations, schools, childcare programs, and individuals with anti-racism resources and activities that are accessible and engaging to all ages.

TBBP is developing a centralized resource database that addresses barriers to participation and promotes resources that promote healing and reconciliation in order to meet and respond to each community’s needs in building the foundations required to combat systemic and structural racism. Our accessible and engaging anti-racism resources and activities support sustaining developmental change by providing diverse communities with the foundational knowledge they need to uplift the stories of people impacted by racism: Black people, Indigenous peoples, and people of colour.

Representation matters, and we want to ensure that all children are able to see themselves (and others who look like them) represented in books within their learning environments.

Who Will it Benefit?

Looking at TBBP's current waitlist, so far, approximately 6,080 children in the Edmonton Area will be directly impacted by The Black Bookshelf Project. We hope to secure funding in order to meet the needs of our growing waitlist.

Approximately 12,160 people will be indirectly impacted by TBBP. Because people, and most importantly children, exist in community, each person who has an opportunity to access and interact with TBBP and grow in their capacity to think and act in anti-racist ways will have an impact on their community. Average family size in the Edmonton Area is 3 people, so we estimate that when we provide resources to the programs on our current waitlist to date, 12,160 people will be indirectly impacted by TBBP. Our waitlist continues to grow. This demonstrates the powerful impact that Field Law will have on the community when it chooses to invest in TBBP.

There are currently 15 Edmonton Area-based schools and child care organizations on our waitlist. Each organization lists the number of children enrolled in their organization when they sign up on the waitlist. Using the enrollment numbers from the Edmonton Area organizations on our waitlist as of July 16, 2020 (6,080 children), and multiplying it using the average family household count of 3 in Edmonton and accounting for one of those people being the enrolled child, we estimate that a total of 18,240 people will be impacted by TBBP in Edmonton alone. By supporting TBBP, Field Law will be investing impactfully in community access to anti-racism resources.