we are

13/10/2026

Where does your support go?

It helps WE ARE:
CREATE learning experiences.
GATHER people in community.
EQUIP children and educators with tools and resources.
REMOVE BARRIERS to participation.
BUILD the people and infrastructure that make the work possible.

A gift to WE ARE is an investment in the whole organization.

Invest in WE ARE: https://bit.ly/investinWEARE


Link in Bio

02/10/2026

Nikole Hannah-Jones’ recent article about her daughter’s schooling has sparked fierce debate about the choices Black parents make in pursuit of an equitable education for their children.

A new News & Observer article brings that conversation home, sharing how Black families in Durham and Wake are navigating questions of academic opportunity, cultural representation, belonging, and advocacy.

We're grateful to Kristen Johnson for including local families in this convo.

Our Lead Curator Dr. Ronda is featured, calling us to approach families’ choices with empathy while keeping our focus on the systems that make these choices so difficult.

Black children deserve educational spaces where academic learning, belonging, and healthy racial identity are not competing priorities.

The News & Observer talked to six parents in the Triangle about where they decided to send their children to school, and why.

14/09/2026

THE WORK CONTINUES.

This year, we’re inviting you to invest in WE ARE, not just one event or one program, but the work as a whole.
WE ARE creates liberatory, culturally affirming learning spaces for children, families, and educators.

Throughout the year, we’ll show you what that investment makes possible.

The learning.
The relationships.
The resources.
The moments of connection.
The work behind the scenes.

Your gift helps keep all of it moving.


See https://bit.ly/46XN1qs to donate!

14/09/2026

What a beautiful way to begin a new tradition! 💚📚

We are incredibly grateful to Kwame Mbalia for joining us for our 1st Annual Ruby Bridges Literary Day and sharing his time, stories, and wisdom with our young people and families. Thank you, Kwame Mbalia , for helping us honor Ruby Bridges’ legacy and for continuing that legacy through storytelling that affirms & inspires young people.

A special thank you to Book Harvest for partnering with WE ARE to bring this vision to life. We are grateful for partners who believe, as we do, in the power of literacy, truth-telling, and books to help children imagine & create a more just world.

And to every family and young person who showed up, listened, asked questions, and celebrated with us: thank you. You made the day special.

Here’s to the first of many! 📚✊🏾

08/09/2026

Happy 72nd Birthday Ruby Bridges! In observance of this day and to honor the work she has done and continues to do, the WE ARE office is closed.

Join us this Saturday, September 12th at 10 am as we partner with Book Harvest to host Ruby Bridges Literary Day!

Kwame Mbalia (Kwame Mbalia), author of the Tristan Strong trilogy and Jax Freeman series, will engage us in a read-aloud, Q&A, and book signing. We will honor the legacy of and the ongoing importance of creating culturally affirming learning spaces for children.

See more details and register at bookharvest.org/events, linked in bio.

03/09/2026

Join WE ARE and Book Harvest as we celebrate Ruby Bridges Literary Day, a community gathering rooted in literacy for liberation, truth-telling, and the courage of children to change the world.

This event will take place Saturday, September 12, 10-11:30 am in the Family Space at Book Harvest. Kwame Mbalia (Kwame Mbalia ), author of the Tristan Strong trilogy and Jax Freeman series, will engage us in a read-aloud, Q&A, and book signing. We will honor the legacy of and the ongoing importance of creating culturally affirming learning spaces for children.

Ruby Bridges’ story reminds us that young people have always been at the center of movements for justice. As an organization, we honor her birthday each year as a day of reflection and rest.

We invite community members to join us as we celebrate the power of stories to help us imagine and build a more just world together.

See more details and register at bookharvest.org/events

21/08/2026

Day 4 of the 3rd-5th Grade WE ARE ACTIVISTS Summer Camp

We are forever grateful to Tiffany Griffin, owner of Bright Black. ™ in Durham, and her team for the beautiful experience they curated for our WE ARE ACTIVISTS Summer Camp!  They led us through an Identity, Storytelling & Scentmaking Activity. It was STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, & math) in action! Learn more & bring this experience to your community by visiting their website at www.BrightBlackCandles.com

We also talked explicitly about some of the systems in our community, discussing how systems help and how they sometimes cause harm.

Our mentor text for the day was “Undocumented: A Worker’s Fight” by Duncan Tonatiuh

21/08/2026

We begin each day of camp rooted in joy, song, dance, and social justice chants!!! The young ACTIVISTS love doing Shabooyah Roll Call!

For Day 3 of the WE ARE ACTIVISTS Summer Camp, we talked explicitly about white supremacy, racism, and discrimination while connecting these constructs to social movements of resistance. Power is in our communities!

We read “Ruth and the Green Book” by CalvinAlexanderRamseysr1 as our centerpiece text.

21/08/2026

10 years. Nearly 7,000 books. Countless conversations about racism, identity, justice & activism. ✊🏾✊🏼✊🏾✊🏿

We’re grateful to Kara Yorio of School Library Journal for highlighting 10 years of WE ARE ACTIVISTS Summer Camps and the children and families who have been part of this journey.

Through all the shifts, challenges, and pushback, our mission and values have remained the same. And as the title says, the work continues. 💚

The nonprofit organization we are—a Durham, NC–based organization that runs a literacy-focused anti-racism summer camp and educational workshops—has given nearly 7,000 books that emphasize race, identity, skin color, and activism to campers in first through fifth grade.

09/08/2026

For Day 2 of the WE ARE ACTIVISTS Summer Camp, campers researched different social justice movements based on their selection from Monday. From Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion (DEI) to Immigrant Rights, campers engaged in mad question asking as they wanted to know more!

They also used paint to create and name their own skin tone for their self-portraits. It’s important that we help kids become race conscious and move away from colorblind ideology.

We read “Malcolm Little” by Dr. i l y a s a h❌s h a b a z z.