As our HACC student community works towards building a diverse and safe space for everyone, we want to highlight and amplify black voices here at the HawkEye.

While Black History Month is a great place to start, as a society we need to understand that black history is every day, every month, every year.

Today we would like to share ten books supporting that goal that you can read with your kids.

1. Hair Love by Matthew A. Cherry (Author), Vashti Harrison (Illustrator)

It’s up to Daddy to give his daughter an extra-special hairstyle in this ode to self-confidence and the love between fathers and daughters, from Academy-Award-winning director and former NFL wide receiver Matthew A. Cherry and New York Times bestselling illustrator Vashti Harrison.

2. Little Legends: Exceptional Men in Black History by Vashti Harrison

An important book for readers of all ages, this beautifully illustrated and engagingly written volume brings to life true stories of black men in history. Among these biographies, readers will find aviators and artists, politicians and pop stars, athletes and activists. The exceptional men featured include writer James Baldwin, artist Aaron Douglas, filmmaker Oscar Devereaux Micheaux, lawman Bass Reeves, civil rights leader John Lewis, dancer Alvin Ailey, and musician Prince.

3. Who Was Martin Luther King, Jr.?: A Who Was? Board Book by Lisbeth Kaiser (Author), Who HQ (Author), Stanley Chow (Illustrator)

The chronology and themes of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s meaningful life are presented in a masterfully succinct text, with just a few sentences per page. The fresh, stylized illustrations are sure to captivate young readers and adults alike. With a read-aloud biographical summary in the back, this age-appropriate introduction honors and shares the life and work of one of the most influential civil rights activists of our time.

4. All Because You Matter by Tami Charles  (Author), Bryan Collier (Illustrator)

A lyrical, heart-lifting love letter to Black and brown children everywhere: reminding them how much they matter, that they have always mattered, and they always will, from powerhouse rising star author Tami Charles and esteemed, award-winning illustrator Bryan Collier.

5. Henry’s Freedom Box by Ellen Levine (Author), Kadir Nelson (Illustrator)

Henry Brown doesn’t know how old he is. Nobody keeps records of slaves’ birthdays. All the time he dreams about freedom, but that dream seems farther away than ever when he is torn from his family and put to work in a warehouse. Henry grows up and marries, but he is again devastated when his family is sold at the slave market. Then one day, as he lifts a crate at the warehouse, he knows exactly what he must do: He will mail himself to the North. After an arduous journey in the crate, Henry finally has a birthday — his first day of freedom.

6. Hidden Figures: The True Story of Four Black Women and the Space Race by Margot Lee Shetterly (Author), Laura Freeman (Illustrator)

Dorothy Vaughan, Mary Jackson, Katherine Johnson, and Christine Darden were good at math…really good.

They participated in some of NASA’s greatest successes, like providing the calculations for America’s first journey into space. And they did so during a time when being black and a woman limited what they could do. But they worked hard. They persisted. And they used their genius minds to change the world.

7. Full, Full, Full of Love by Trish Cooke (Author), Paul Howard (Illustrator)

For the youngest member of an exuberant extended family, Sunday dinner at Grannie’s can be full indeed — full of hugs and kisses, full of tasty dishes, full to the brim with happy faces, and full, full, full of love. With a special focus on the bond between little Jay Jay and his grannie, Trish Cooke introduces us to a gregarious family we are sure to want more, more, more of.

8. Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History by Vashti Harrison (Author)

An important book for all ages, Little Leaders educates and inspires as it relates true stories of forty trailblazing black women in American history. Illuminating text paired with irresistible illustrations bring to life both iconic and lesser-known female figures of Black history such as abolitionist Sojourner Truth, pilot Bessie Coleman, chemist Alice Ball, politician Shirley Chisholm, mathematician Katherine Johnson, poet Maya Angelou, and filmmaker Julie Dash.

9. Mae Among the Stars by Roda Ahmed (Author), Stasia Burrington (Illustrator)

A beautiful picture book for sharing and marking special occasions such as graduation, inspired by the life of the first African American woman to travel in space, Mae Jemison.

10. One Love by Cedella Marley (Author), Vanessa Brantley-Newton (Illustrator)

Adapted from one of Bob Marley’s most beloved songs, One Love brings the joyful spirit and unforgettable lyrics to life for a new generation. Readers will delight in dancing to the beat and feeling the positive groove of change when one girl enlists her community to help transform her neighborhood for the better. It’s a testament to the amazing things that can happen when we all get together with one love in our hearts.