Antiracist Baby
AuthorIbram X. Kendi
IllustratorAshley Lukashevsky
Cover artistAshley Lukashevsky
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
GenreChildren's picture book
Published2020
Media typePrint (hardback)
Pages24
ISBN978-0-593-11041-6
OCLC1162520080

Antiracist Baby is a 2020 children's book written by Ibram X. Kendi and illustrated by Ashley Lukashevsky. The book, inspired by the author's four-year-old daughter,[1] was conceived as a tool for discussing racism with young children.[2][3] The book proposes nine steps for discussing racism, with the ultimate goal of teaching children to be antiracist.[4][5] The book states that "Antiracist Baby is bred not born. Antiracist Baby is raised to make society transform" and that a choice is necessary: "babies are taught to be racist or antiracist—there's no neutrality."[6]

Background

Author Ibram X. Kendi
Illustrator Ashley Lukashevsky

Kendi is the founder of the Antiracist Research & Policy Center at American University and is currently the founding director of the Boston University Center for Antiracist Research.[7][8] Antiracist Baby expands on Kendi's previous books, Stamped from the Beginning and How to Be an Antiracist.[9][10][11]

On writing Antiracist Baby, Kendi said that the book would be a useful tool to start a conversation between parents and children on what anti-racism means, and encourage children to ask questions about race.[10]

Release

The book was first released as a board book in June 2020, then as a picture book in July 2020.[12][13] In 2021 Netflix announced that it would produce a series of "musical animated shorts" based on the book.[14][15] In May 2022, Netflix announced that the series was scrapped for creative reasons.[16]

Reception

The book was at the top of the New York Times best-seller list and was chosen as one of National Public Radio's 100 favorite books for young readers.[17][18] It received positive reviews from the School Library Journal and Publishers Weekly.[19][20] Will Lloyd, writing in The Spectator, rejected its thesis that babies are taught to be either racist or antiracist.[21] In 2021, Safeway grocery stores in Oregon temporarily pulled the book from sale following a customer complaint (the stores later returned the book to sale).[22]

During the 2022 Ketanji Brown Jackson Supreme Court nomination hearing in the Senate, Antiracist Baby was brought up as an issue by Ted Cruz when questioning Ketanji Brown Jackson about her opinions of critical race theory, as she was a board member at Georgetown Day School, a private school in Washington, D.C., that had the book in their curriculum. Then nominee Brown-Jackson replied, saying that "I don't believe that any child should be made to feel as though they are racist or though they are not valued or less than, or victims, oppressors. I don't believe in any of that".[23][24] This resulted in significant exposure for the book and led to a sudden increase in sales, making it a number one bestseller on Amazon's for children's books on prejudice and racism, and among the top-selling children’s books across multiple categories.[25]

References

  1. ↑ Kaplan, Erin Aubry (5 June 2020). "'Antiracist Baby' helps educate infants about racism. Author Ibram X. Kendi explains how". Los Angeles Times.
  2. ↑ Morris, Natalie (22 April 2021). "Antiracist Baby: The picture book teaching toddlers about racism". Metro.
  3. ↑ Walsh, Colleen (July 24, 2020). "Teaching children to be antiracist". The Harvard Gazette. Retrieved August 15, 2021.
  4. ↑ Parker-Pope, Tara (24 June 2020). "How to Raise an Anti-Racist Kid". The New York Times.
  5. ↑ Storey, Celia (15 June 2020). "READ TO ME: Antiracist Baby is a best-seller". Arkansas Online.
  6. ↑ Rosen, Christine (14 September 2020). "You Will Be Re-Educated". Commentary Magazine.
  7. ↑ Harris, Nicole Rush (2021-06-09). "Book Review: One World". Urban Education. 58 (5): 959–961. doi:10.1177/00420859211023122. ISSN 0042-0859. S2CID 236260439.
  8. ↑ "Ibram X. Kendi, Leading Scholar on Racism, to Join BU". Boston University. 4 June 2020. Retrieved 2022-05-21.
  9. ↑ X, Kendi, Ibram. "How To Be an Antiracist". Library Journal. Retrieved 2022-05-21.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  10. 1 2 Writer, Colleen Walsh Harvard Staff (2020-07-24). "'Antiracist Baby' helps kids and adults learn". Harvard Gazette. Retrieved 2022-05-21.
  11. ↑ Stewart, Jeffrey C. (2019-08-20). "Fighting Racism Even, and Especially, Where We Don't Realize It Exists". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-05-21.
  12. ↑ "ANTIRACIST BABY | Kirkus Reviews". kirkusreviews.com.
  13. ↑ "Top seller 'Antiracist Baby' to be released as picture book". Chron. 18 June 2020.
  14. ↑ Mauch, Ally. "Historian Dr. Ibram X. Kendi to Produce Three Netflix Projects Based on His Anti-Racism Books". People. Retrieved August 15, 2021.
  15. ↑ Sun, Rebecca (15 January 2021). "Netflix Partners with Dr. Ibram X. Kendi for Three Projects Based on His Books (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved August 15, 2021.
  16. ↑ "Netflix Scraps Several Animated Projects, Including Ava DuVernay's 'Wings of Fire' and 'Antiracist Baby' (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. May 17, 2022. Retrieved May 17, 2022.
  17. ↑ "'Antiracist Baby' Encourages Babies And Toddlers To Confront Racism At An Early Age". BET.com.
  18. ↑ Mayer, Petra (August 31, 2020). "Welcome To Story Hour: 100 Favorite Books For Young Readers". NPR.org. Retrieved August 15, 2021.
  19. ↑ Pasquariello, Kristy (June 5, 2020). "AntiRacist Baby". School Library Journal. Retrieved August 15, 2021.
  20. ↑ "Children's Book Review: Antiracist Baby". Publishers Weekly. June 2020. Retrieved August 15, 2021.
  21. ↑ Lloyd, Will (September 2, 2020). "Is your baby racist?". The Spectator. Retrieved August 15, 2021.
  22. ↑ Jaquiss, Nigel (March 2, 2021). "Safeway Pulled Bestselling "Antiracist Baby" Book From Shelves in Oregon Stores Last Month". Willamette Week. Retrieved August 15, 2021.
  23. ↑ Wermund, Benjamin (2022-03-22). "Texas Sen. Ted Cruz questions Supreme Court nominee about 'Antiracist Baby' book at 13:10". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved 2022-03-24.
  24. ↑ "WATCH: Sen. Ted Cruz presses Ketanji Jackson Browne on critical race theory". PBS NewsHour. 2022-03-22. Retrieved 2022-03-23.
  25. ↑ "Ted Cruz May Have Just Boosted Sales For The Anti-Racist Children's Book He Attacked". HuffPost. 2022-03-23. Retrieved 2022-03-24.
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