✨ Black History Is every day.

Cristal Tejeda
6 days ago
5 min read

Reading Is Resistance. Truth Is Protection. Joy Is Still Ours.

Let’s be honest.

Books are political. Reading is political. Teaching Black history is political resistance.

And it always has been.

This Black History Month, we refuse to pretend otherwise.

We are raising children in a world where information is controlled, history is contested, and power is often maintained through silence. To deny that reality does not protect our children — it leaves them unprepared.

But we also believe this:

🕊️ Truth does not require trauma. Preparation does not require fear. And resistance does not require the loss of joy.

We can tell our children the truth without stealing their innocence — and we must.

🕊️ Saying the Names Is Part of the Lesson

Black history is not frozen in the past. It is unfolding now.

This year, we hold the names:

Keith Porter Jr. — a 43-year-old Black father, killed on New Year’s Eve 2025/2026 by an off-duty ICE agent in Los Angeles.

Renée Good — a Minneapolis mother whose life was taken during a federal immigration enforcement operation in January 2026.

Alex Pretti — a 37-year-old ICU nurse, killed later that same month during protests sparked by Renée Good’s death.

These are not abstract cases. These are human beings. Families. Communities.

Our children don’t need every graphic detail — but they do need the truth that systems can harm, power must be questioned, and human dignity must be defended.

Silence does not preserve innocence. Context does.

📖 Reading Is the Sharpest Tool We Can Give Our Children

We do not read to our children simply to entertain them.

We read to:

give them language for what they see
teach them how to analyze information
help them distinguish truth from propaganda
root them in history so they are not easily manipulated

Reading is how children learn to think — not just comply.

Books help children understand:

that injustice is not random
that resistance has a lineage
that faith, creativity, and community have always been survival tools
that they come from people who endured, imagined, and fought back

This is not neutral education. This is preparation.

✊🏾 Teaching Black History Is Political Resistance — On Purpose

When governments attempt to erase history, restrict books, or sanitize the past, they are not protecting children.

They are protecting power.

Teaching Black history is an act of resistance because it:

disrupts false narratives
exposes patterns of harm
affirms Black humanity
equips children to recognize injustice early

And yes — it is political.

Because politics shapes laws. Laws shape lives. And lives shape children.

🕯️ God Is Not Afraid of Truth

We keep God at the center because faith does not require ignorance.

Scripture is full of political resistance:

Moses confronting empire
Esther navigating power
Jesus challenging state violence
Prophets naming injustice out loud

God has never asked us to hide truth from our children. God asks us to

teach with wisdom, love, and courage.

😄 Where Joy Comes In — And Why It Matters

Here is where we protect childhood.

We do not raise children on despair. We raise them on truth and joy.

Joy is not denial — it is fuel.

That’s why we :🎶 sing🎨 color📖 read aloud😂 laugh together🙏 pray together

Joy tells our children: You are safe while you are learning. You are loved while you are growing. You are not alone in this world.

📺 A Place to Learn Without Fear

If you’re looking for a space where:

Black history is taught honestly
Books are centered as tools of power
Children are nurtured, not overwhelmed
Faith and identity are affirmed

✨ Come read with us on YouTube: Read to You 365 ✨

We read aloud because children deserve guidance through knowledge — not abandonment to algorithms and headlines.

🖍️ Free Coloring Pages: Processing Through Creation

Children process big truths through their hands.

Our FREE Black History Month coloring pages are not distractions — they are tools:

tools for calm
tools for conversation
tools for expression

Coloring allows children to hold truth gently.

📌 Download the free pages on our website and create space to talk, rest, and reflect together.

🛡️ Our Promise to Our Children

We will not lie to you. We will not hide the world from you. And we will not hand you ignorance and call it safety.

We will: give you books🧠 teach you how to think🙏 ground you in faith😄 protect your joy

Because the future will require discernment, courage, and imagination.

And that starts now.

🙏 A Prayer for the Next Generation

God of truth and tenderness, Help us raise children who are informed, not hardened. Aware, not afraid. Joyful, not naïve. Give us wisdom to teach honestly and love fiercely. Let knowledge be their armor and joy be their strength .Amen.

✨ Final Word

Black History Month is not about comfort. It is about clarity.

Reading is not neutral. Books are not harmless. And teaching Black history is not optional.

It is how we prepare children to survive, lead, and transform the future— without losing who they are.

Add to your library to empower your child's mind.

📚 Books That Arm Children With Truth (and Protect Their Joy)

🧠 Books That Teach Children How to THINK (Not Just Feel)

These give language, context, and analysis — without fear.

Change Sings (Ages 4–8) Change is framed as collective action. Children learn that their voice matters now, not later.
click the Link https://amzn.to/4bMzFiG
Stamped (for Kids) (Ages 8–12) Why it matters: This book teaches children how racist ideas are created and spread — and how to question systems early.
click the Link https://amzn.to/4t7JI9a

🛡️ Books That Protect Identity & Innocence at the Same Time

Joy, affirmation, and self-worth are not fluff — they’re armor.

The Day You Begin (Ages 4–8) Why it matters: Teaches children that feeling “different” is not a weakness — it’s part of becoming whole.
click the Link https://amzn.to/4rNe0Ny
Crown: An Ode to the Fresh Cut (Ages 4–8) Why it matters: Black joy is political. Celebration of Black boyhood counters narratives of fear and criminalization.
click the Link https://amzn.to/3PAPRfB

✊🏾 Books That Teach Political Resistance (Age-Appropriate & Honest)

These books show children that protest, organizing, and courage are part of history — and faith.

Let the Children March (Ages 6–10) Why it matters: Children learn that kids have always been part of movements — and that courage can look young.
click the Link https://amzn.to/4bODiVG
Sit-In: How Four Friends Stood Up by Sitting Down (Ages 6–10) Why it matters: A masterclass in nonviolent resistance, strategy, and community action.
click the Link https://amzn.to/4sz2kzf

🌍 Books That Refuse Erasure & Center Black Legacy

These ground children in lineage, so they are not easily manipulated.

The ABCs of Black History (Ages 4–8) Why it matters: Vocabulary is power. This book builds historical literacy early.
click the Link https://amzn.to/4lPm9zL
Young, Gifted and Black (Ages 5–10) Why it matters: Shows Black children that brilliance is vast, global, and ongoing.
click the link https://amzn.to/47NCMpw

“These books don’t traumatize children — they prepare them. They teach truth with care, resistance with joy, and history with dignity.”

📺 How We Use These Books on Read to You 365

On Read to You 365, we don’t just read books — we:

read aloud so children aren’t left alone with difficult experiences
pause for reflection and joy
connect stories to faith, identity, and self-worth
remind children they are safe while learning

📌 Watch the read-alouds on YouTube: Read to You 365

📌 Download the FREE Black History coloring pages to process learning creatively

🖍️ Why Coloring + Reading Matters

Coloring is not a distraction — it’s integration. Children absorb truth through play.

That’s how we:

keep innocence intact
reduce anxiety
invite conversation
let learning land gently

✨ Final Truth (This Is the Line)

Books are political. Reading is resistance. Black history is preparation. Joy is protection.

And our children deserve all of it.