Why Are All the Black Librarians Gathering in the School Library?

Erika Long is a certified school librarian, school library consultant, and presenter, USA.

• Acknowledgments Introduction1. Legacy Work, Sharon Wiggins (New York, USA)2. Giving Back and Never Giving Up: Empowering and Building One Student and Library at a Time, Donna Gray (New York City School Library System, USA)3. Call Me Mister Tabb, A.B. Tabb (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA)4. From Bookkeeper to Literacy Liberator, Chiquita Touré (Columbus, Ohio, USA)5. Black in White Spaces: A Librarian’s Fight for Respect, Representation, and Systemic Change, Dr. Andrea Jamison (Illinois State University, USA)6. I Belong Here, Aleea Davey-Price (Charlotte Country Day School, Charlotte, North Carolina, USA)7. Embracing My Sankofa Moment, Dr. Cynthia Richardson Johnson (University of Rhode Island, USA)8. Becoming the Librarian I Didn’t Plan to Be, Dionne Howell-Taylor (Fresno Unified School District, California, USA)9. Breaking Boundaries: My Journey into Librarianship, Sean Brandon (Ypsilanti Community Schools, Michigan, USA)10. Making a Presence and Opening Space: A New Day in Black School Librarianship, Stacey S. Nunn (Maryland, USA)11. Cementing My Place, Kat Baxter (Alabama, USA)12. Top Library Leadership Lessons I Learned from Beyoncé, Cicely Lewis (Georgia, USA)13. Designing and Opening a School Library Program, Theresa Bruce (Baltimore, Maryland, USA)14. Work and Gratitude Journaling as Survival Practice for Black School Librarians, S. Michele Echols (Science Skills Center High School for Science, Technology and the Creative Arts,Brooklyn, NY, USA)Editor and Contributor BiographiesIndex

Why Are All the Black Librarians Gathering in the School Library? Stories and Lessons offers a powerful and deeply human look into the personal and professional lives of Black librarians, weaving together their lived experiences with the transformative work they do every day. Through honest storytelling, it highlights how these educators center student voice and involvement, creating library spaces where all learners feel seen, valued, and welcomed. The narratives do not shy away from exposing the racial biases and systemic inequities Black librarians have long faced and continue to confront, but they exemplify the resilience, creativity, and strategic action used to challenge and change those conditions. At its heart, the book is about building vibrant, inclusive communities of readers while reimagining what equity in education truly looks like.What sets this book apart is that each chapter extends beyond reflection into action, featuring a “Beyond the Page” section with concrete, practical strategies readers can apply in their own contexts. Whether you are an educator, librarian, or advocate, these actionable insights make it possible to actively participate in building more inclusive spaces for Black librarians and in building stronger communities of readers. At its heart, this book is both a call to awareness and a guide for meaningful change in the school library landscape.