By Reading, We Can

02/02/2026

Happy Black History Month!

02/28/2025

“…it represents the progress one can make through reading and imagination.”

02/22/2025

The world has been without Malcolm X for 60 years today, yet his enduring legacy lives. It’s so neccessary that we honor him and ourselves by actualizing his words through radical love for each other and radical change of the world around us. Because we are a literacy organization, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention how much Malcolm X valued reading and how much value it added to his life—it can be revelatory and transformative for you too! Reading is resistance. Reading is political. Reading is revolutionary.

P.S. I included a few quotes from James Baldwin on the beautiful soul that is Malcolm X.

02/22/2025

The world has been without Malcolm X for 60 years today, yet his enduring legacy lives. It’s so neccessary that we honor him and ourselves by actualizing his words through radical love for each other and radical change of the world around us. Because we are a literacy organization, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention how much Malcolm X valued reading and how much value it added to his life—it can be revelatory and transformative for you too! Reading is resistance. Reading is political. Reading is revolutionary.

P.S. I included a few quotes from James Baldwin on the beautiful soul that is Malcolm X.

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02/18/2025

02/18/2025

What better day to honor President Barack Obama than today, Presidents’ Day. And although today IS Presidents’ Day, we want to celebrate Obama the reader, which shaped Obama the writer. Leaders are often well read and President Obama exemplifies this on the highest level.

One of the things that stood out to me when reading Becoming was Barack’s incessant reading. Michelle notes that whenever they’re in a new place, the first thing he does is finds or creates his reading nook. No matter what, he always makes time (and space) for reading. Reading has shaped him into the leader and writer he is today. His books, Of Thee I Sing: A Letter to My Daughters, Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance, The Audacity of Hope, and A Promised Land are all must reads.

It’s important to note that President Obama’s initial career choices were either to write fiction or to go into politics (both choices inspired by the works he read), that he says the most important piece of literature he’s read is Toni Morrison’s, Song of Solomon; it “taught him how to be.”

I had slacked off on reading for many years but after reading Becoming, I was more inspired than ever to get back to my first love. If someone like Obama can make time to read then my excuses are not valid.

The name of our organization is by design. His first presidential campaign slogan, Yes We Can, coupled with the fact that reading led him to that point and can lead others to similar places in life is what By Reading, We Can! means. Thank you for inspiring me, thank you for inspiring a generation President Barack Obama!

02/08/2025

"Mississippi is not Mississippi’s problem, Mississippi is America’s problem. If America wanted to do something about Mississippi, it would’ve done so by now." -Fannie Lou Hamer August 22, 1964

Today, we recommend "Until I Am Free: Fannie Lou Hamer’s Enduring Message to America" by Keisha N. Blain.

Women, especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds like Fannie Lou Hamer, are frequently marginalized in discussions about civil rights leaders. However, Mrs. Hamer’s remarkable story serves as a testament to her unwavering dedication to creating change. Beginning her voting rights activism in 1962, she went on to help establish the MS Freedom Democratic Party and even ran for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives by the end of 1964, boldly declaring, "I’m showing people that a Negro can run for office." Her iconic televised speech at the 1964 DNC remains a powerful reminder of her courage. View a poignant reenactment of her speech by Mississippi’s own, Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor at https://youtu.be/X8cco0wR2UU

02/06/2025

I love her story—her strength, her resilience, her perseverance—and today, I honor her. Anne Moody is the epitome of an unsung hero of the civil rights movement. If you’re not from Mississippi, you’ve likely never heard of her. And even if you are from Mississippi, there’s still a good chance you haven’t. Her autobiography, Coming of Age in Mississippi, is one of the most important books I’ve ever read. It offers an intimate look at life in rural Mississippi from the 1940s to the mid-'60s, chronicling Moody’s life from early childhood to adulthood.

Her coming-of-age story mirrors the experience of many Black children growing up in poverty during that era, but what sets her apart is her unyielding willingness to be an agent of change despite the fear and resistance she faced. She vividly details the crucial role Tougaloo College played in her life and the movement—especially the support from organizations like CORE, SNCC, and the NAACP on campus.

Moody also shares firsthand accounts of how the deaths of Emmett Till, Medgar Evers, the four little girls killed in the Birmingham church bombing on her 23rd birthday, and the assassination of JFK deeply impacted her. She recounts the death threats made against her and her family that forced her to stay away from Centreville for years. Isolated from her family, she pressed on in the fight for equality.

Anne Moody was assaulted, arrested, and regularly threatened with death, yet she stayed in the struggle. Her memoir, published in 1968, revealed the depth of her courage. She later published Mr. Death: Four Stories in 1975 but chose to step away from the public eye after the civil rights movement. Despite the trials she faced, Anne Moody’s bravery and commitment to justice remain a testament to the strength of the human spirit.

02/05/2025

How do you teach Black History to your children? The books mentioned here have been featured in many of our giveaways over the past five years since our founding. Books mentioned:
Born on the Water
*Meet Addy
Henry’s Freedom Box
Juneteenth for Mazie
This Is the Rope
One Last Word by Nikki Grimes
Heart & Soul: The History of America and African Americans
Your Name Is a Song
Crown: Ode to the Fresh Cut
Sulwe

*book is out of print

Reading is resistance. Reading is political. Reading is revolutionary.

02/04/2025