Diversity in American children’s literature has been a popular topic of intense debate in recent years. Many authors and educators have argued that the genre of children’s literature is severely lacking in diverse and multicultural texts. Others suggest that many positive changes have occurred in the genre, and that children’s literature in the United States represents a wide variety of cultures and backgrounds. In the article “On Being White” by Allie Jane Bruce, the New York City children’s librarian talks about the need for diversity in children’s books across the United States. Bruce, a librarian at Bank Street College, explains that in America she has had the privilege of seeing her white culture represented everywhere. She is considered
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To conduct this research, forty five picture books (fifteen for each ethnic group) were systematically selected and reviewed by insiders who were a part of the culture or ethnic group that each book represented. Once the results from the study were published, the authors were able to make some evaluations about how these three cultures are portrayed in multicultural picture books found in the United States. Firstly, they found that in most texts, African Americans were portrayed as being athletic, musically inclined, and poor. Many of the characters also seemed to be struggling in school. When evaluating texts with Asian American characters, most of the characters in these books were depicted as being smart, technologically savvy, and very respectful of their elders. Lastly, the authors discoverd that texts that involved Hispanic American characters tended to present them as victims of poverty. Fathers often worked blue-collar jobs, and mothers worked to raise the kids and cook large, traditional meals in the home. Hispanic American culture depicted in these texts also placed a strong emphasis on the importance of hard work and determination (2014, p. …show more content…
These two articles bring to light dominance of white culture in the world of picture books and children’s literacy, but they do this in different ways. Bruce talks about the privileges of whites in bookstores, libraries, and classrooms. She explains that whites are being catered to in the world of children’s literacy, because their lifestyles and values are found most often on bookshelves across the nation. Yoo-Lee takes research and uses it to back up the idea that children’s literature can be biased toward different cultures, and can falsely represent specific ethnic groups. Yoo-Lee’s research suggests that authors of children’s literature have been guilty of presenting different cultures as lacking in certain qualities, or even representing them as sub-par to dominate groups in the United States. This has caused prevalent cultures in America to have incorrect or offensive understandings and assumptions about diverse cultures and values. Both articles reveal the sad truth that the way whites perceive different cultures and ethnic groups influences how these groups are represented in children’s literacy. Both texts also suggest that many “quality” multicultural texts have skewed and tainted representations of diverse cultures and ethnic groups (Bruce,
To conduct this research, forty five picture books (fifteen for each ethnic group) were systematically selected and reviewed by insiders who were a part of the culture or ethnic group that each book represented. Once the results from the study were published, the authors were able to make some evaluations about how these three cultures are portrayed in multicultural picture books found in the United States. Firstly, they found that in most texts, African Americans were portrayed as being athletic, musically inclined, and poor. Many of the characters also seemed to be struggling in school. When evaluating texts with Asian American characters, most of the characters in these books were depicted as being smart, technologically savvy, and very respectful of their elders. Lastly, the authors discoverd that texts that involved Hispanic American characters tended to present them as victims of poverty. Fathers often worked blue-collar jobs, and mothers worked to raise the kids and cook large, traditional meals in the home. Hispanic American culture depicted in these texts also placed a strong emphasis on the importance of hard work and determination (2014, p. …show more content…
These two articles bring to light dominance of white culture in the world of picture books and children’s literacy, but they do this in different ways. Bruce talks about the privileges of whites in bookstores, libraries, and classrooms. She explains that whites are being catered to in the world of children’s literacy, because their lifestyles and values are found most often on bookshelves across the nation. Yoo-Lee takes research and uses it to back up the idea that children’s literature can be biased toward different cultures, and can falsely represent specific ethnic groups. Yoo-Lee’s research suggests that authors of children’s literature have been guilty of presenting different cultures as lacking in certain qualities, or even representing them as sub-par to dominate groups in the United States. This has caused prevalent cultures in America to have incorrect or offensive understandings and assumptions about diverse cultures and values. Both articles reveal the sad truth that the way whites perceive different cultures and ethnic groups influences how these groups are represented in children’s literacy. Both texts also suggest that many “quality” multicultural texts have skewed and tainted representations of diverse cultures and ethnic groups (Bruce,