A program in Martin County aims to inspire young girls of color to read and write by providing them with books to find themselves in. It’s called 1,000 Black Girl Books. A Moment of Joy: News We Love. A group of young girls not only build a wealth of knowledge but also their creativity and imagination by flipping through the pages of books with characters who resemble them. “I want to read about my color,” said Ashaina Griffin, a fifth-grader in the class that attends the 1,000 Black Girl Books book club. The book club was brought to the community center two years ago, the manager for the Martin County Library System said. Encomio said the county’s local clubs are based on a national campaign started by a then 10-year-old girl named Marley Dais. Her 1,000 Black Girl Books campaign addresses the lack of diversity in required reading in schools. Since then, she has created a database of over 13,000 books featuring black girls as the main characters. “It’s extremely important that as they read, they can see themselves, relate to what’s going on in the stories, and see other writers who might look like them, so they can be inspired to write and to read,” said Encomio. Never miss a thing: sign up for personalized newsletters and alerts from WPBF 25 News. Currently, the library system has book clubs at three select Martin County after-school programs aimed at underserved youth, including the Hobe Sound BLAST program at Banner Lake Community Center, the East Stuart program at Stuart 10th Street Center, and the Indiantown program at Bill & Barbara Whitman Boys & Girls Club in Indiantown.The Hobe Sound program is funded by the Hobe Sound Community Chest while the other two are funded by the Martin – St Lucie Community Foundation. Each girl in the program receives free copies of the books they read, participate in introspective crafts, and each club has special guest speakers. “We want to make sure that we provide different books to these specific communities,” Encomio said. In just a short time, she said, this has already increased these girls’ love for reading. When asked what she’s looking forward to most this year, Griffin had one goal in mind: “Read 1,000 books!” For more information on the 1,000 Black Girl Books book clubs, click here. A look at the world around us: WPBF 25 News Forecasting Our Future
A program in Martin County aims to inspire young girls of color to read and write by providing them with books to find themselves in.
It’s called 1,000 Black Girl Books.
A moment of joy: News we love
At Banner Lake Community Center in Hobe Sound, a group of young girls are not only building a wealth of knowledge, but also their creativity and imagination by flipping through the pages of books featuring characters who resemble them.
“I want to read about the color of my skin,” said Ashaina Griffin, a fifth-grade student who attends the 1,000 Black Girl Books book club.
The book club was brought to the community center two years ago.
“We try to highlight books that feature black female protagonists,” said Darlene Encomio, director of literacy for the Martin County Library System.
Encomio said the county’s local clubs are based on a national campaign started by a then 10-year-old girl named Marley Dais. Her 1,000 Black Girl Books campaign addresses the lack of diversity in required reading in schools.
Since then, she has created a database of over 13,000 books featuring black girls as the main characters.
“It’s extremely important so that they feel like reading, they can see themselves, they can relate to what’s going on in the stories, and they can see other writers who might look like them, so they can be inspired, to write and read myself,” said Encomio.
Don’t miss anything: Sign up for personalized newsletters and alerts from WPBF 25 News
Currently, the library system has book clubs in three select Martin County after-school programs aimed at underserved youth, including the Hobe Sound BLAST program at the Banner Lake Community Center, the East Stuart program at the Stuart 10th Street Center, and the Indiantown program at the Bill & Barbara Whitman Boys & Girls Club in Indiantown.
The Hobe Sound program is funded by the Hobe Sound Community Chest while the other two are funded by the Martin – St Lucie Community Foundation.
Each girl in the program receives free copies of the books she reads, can participate in introspective crafts, and each club has special guest speakers.
“We want to make sure that we provide different books to these specific communities,” Encomio said.
In just a short time, she said, it has already increased these girls’ love of reading.
When asked what she’s looking forward to most this year, Griffin had one goal in mind: “Read 1000 books!”
For more information on the 1,000 Black Girl Books book clubs, click here.
A look at the world around us: WPBF 25 messages that predict our future
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