I’m humbled and deeply honored to share that Je’Quita Z. Johnson, Author, I Am Pretty personally selected me as a panelist for her first annual Black Children’s Book Week. Je’Quita specifically said, “I knew that I had to have you on the show after hearing about your book, Dear Daughter.” She will be celebrating black children and books by black authors that represent them in a positive light from 2/28 - 3/5 at 7:00 PM EST nightly.
Je’Quita is not only an author but she’s also a Behavior Intervention Specialist. She assists students in building stronger social and emotional learning skills, to prepare them for success in school, home, and life. Je’Quita shares that she noticed that young ladies have a tendency to be mean in her observations in working with them. She proffered that this is often rooted in low self-perception about themselves. Je’Quita further stated that these young ladies seem to feel better about themselves when they bring others down in that regard. That in and of itself is what made her decide to write “I Am Pretty.” She did so to help young ladies understand that true beauty comes from the inside. But not only that, she believes that I can help make a difference hence the reason that she selected myself along with the others such as Sherricka Carpenter-Stanley, Dominique Okonkwo (Miami Motherhood), and Dr. Sheila Thomas (The Parent Partner)
Je’Quita is facilitating this event through a collaboration with, Veronica N. Chapman, Founder, Black Baby Books. Black Baby Books is an initiative of Boxxxout Enterprises where they design creative solutions for social change. Veronica launched the platform in response to feedback that she received while promoting her own children’s books. Parents and guardians would often speak with Veronica about how challenging it was to find children’s books with Black characters, so she created a solution! You can read more about BLack Baby Books by going here.
We will be celebrating by hosting a Facebook Live event inviting authors to share their why’s, read excerpts from their books, etc. You can tune in and gather more details about this event by going here. We’d love to see you there so be sure to tune in.
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