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Gong Xi Fa Cai!! This Sunday marks Lunar New Year, celebrated in many Asian countries, also called Chinese New Year or Spring Festival. The year about to begin will be the Year of the Rabbit—predicted to be a year of hope, as the Rabbit is the symbol of longevity, peace, and prosperity in Chinese Culture.
Here are a couple of great links to learn some facts about Lunar New Year and a list of books for kids about Lunar New Year.
Next Monday we celebrate the life and legacy of civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. To complement the learning your children are doing at school, here are some great resources about his life, legacy and the holiday for you to share at home:
Happy new year! Tis the season for resolutions, learning and improving. Whatever your resolution may be related to equity, anti-racism, diversity or inclusion, there are some great resources out there. Here are a couple links to roundups of books, podcasts, movies and other resources to get you started, or further your anti-racist journey.
We hope everyone has a wonderful holiday break with lots of time for friends and family. There are many holidays coming up in the next few weeks and many ways to celebrate. Here’s a set of links that share many ways to incorporate learning about diversity and creating inclusively into the holidays:
https://www.avazapp.com/blog/inclusive-ways-to-celebrate-the-holidays/
https://www.culturaldiversityresources.org/single-post/winter-celebrations-around-the-world
https://stacker.com/art-culture/20-celebrations-holiday-season-besides-christmas
Saturday, December 3, was the United Nations International Day of People with Disabilities, recognizing how important it is to fully engage people with disabilities in issues that impact them and their futures. Disabilities come in a variety of forms; here is a great list of books that discuss disabilities for all grade levels.
We hope everyone had a great week off and were able to spend time with family and loved ones!
This week's equity corner recognizes Trans Week of Awareness, which began on November 13. While the week has already passed, it is always a great time to listen, learn, and become a better ally to trans people! Here's a great link to a wide variety of books featuring trans people for kids of all ages!
As you know, next week is Thanksgiving. Our celebration of Thanksgiving and acknowledgement of the multiple perspectives around the history of the holiday have changed dramatically in the past several years. Below are several resources about indigenous perspectives on the holiday, a more truthful and holistic telling of the origin of the holiday and more, both to share with the kids in your life and to help you learn more, too!
November is Native American Heritage month - here are some great resources to share with kids of all ages, and to learn about the history of Native people yourself. One great way is to familiarize yourself with the nine federally recognized tribes in Oregon. Another is to always consider the original inhabitants where you are - here's a great map to help with that! https://native-land.ca/
November 1–2 is Dia de los Muertos or Day of the Dead, a holiday celebrated mostly in Mexico that honors deceased family members and relatives with special foods, candles, and offerings. Learn more about Dia de los Muertos here!
Hi families! As you know - next Monday is Halloween! If your family celebrates, it's important to ensure that the costumes you choose aren't offensive, and learn what the difference is between cultural appropriation and cultural APPRECIATION so you can teach the kiddos in your life!
Here's a great guide on how to steer clear of problematic costumes!
Did you know that October is LGBTQ+ History month? Here are some great resources and books to introduce and/or discuss this topic with your family! In addition to the heritage month status, there are several related holidays in October including National Coming Out Day (October 11), Spirit Day acknowledging LGBTQ+ youth (October 20), and Asexual Awareness Week (last week in October).
Goodbye, summer, hello, fall! We’re a couple of weeks into autumn and here's a great list of picture books that celebrate the changing of the seasons and also feature a multicultural cast of characters! It's sometimes challenging to find children's books that feature non-white protagonists, but this is a good reminder that with a little sleuthing you can find books on all topics that include a diverse cast, not just books about heavier subjects like racism and equality.
Monday, October 10, is Indigenous Peoples Day! Here's a list of ways you can celebrate and observe with your family!
L'Shanah Tovah! Happy New Year! On September 25 the Jewish holiday of Rosh Hashanah began, and October 4 and 5 will be the observance of Yom Kippur. This period of 10 days marks the beginning of the Jewish new year and a period of reflection and celebration culminating in a day of fasting (for adults) and apologizing for any bad actions over the past year.
Here is a great book list to allow you and your families to learn more about these celebrations, and here is more information about Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.
This Thursday is back to school night! As we begin the school year, it's a great time to remind kids of the fact that just like we all look differently and have different interests, we all learn in different ways. Here is a great list of books about learning differences that you might enjoy with your family.
Hello! Welcome back to the equity corner, where we try to share a little information every week for kids and families about diversity, inclusion, justice, and equity. You can read our archive here. If you have recommendations or questions, feel free to reach out.
September 15 is the start of Hispanic Heritage Month, and here are some great children's books to celebrate!
We hope you have a wonderful summer break! If you're looking for equity and diversity resources for yourself or the kids in your life, you can always check out our resource page here: https://www.riekepta.org/diversity
June is Pride Month! Portland's Pride festival runs June 12–19. Attending these events, many of which are family friendly, is a great way to celebrate Pride with kids! Here are some other great suggestions about how to celebrate Pride Month with kids of all ages.
Sadly the last couple of weeks have seen additional instances of racialized violence and murder. Here are some good resources to help you discuss these tough issues with kids.
May is also Jewish American Heritage Month! Here are some great books and other educational resources to help talk to your kids about Jewish Culture and Judaism as well as things like the Holocaust and anti-Semitism.
With all this rain, it seems like a great time to grab a stack of books and curl up for a rainy afternoon of reading. Here is a great list of new authors of color writing for kids of all ages.