Books – GrassROOTS Community Foundation

Giving Tuesday-Support #BannedBook Clubs

This #GivingTuesday, Stand Up for Literacy and Freedom of Expression This year, over 10,000 unique titles were banned in the United States. Among these are Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye, Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God, and Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson. Brown Girl Dreaming inspired Marley Dias, our very own GrassROOTS Community Foundation SuperGirl, to launch the #1000BlackGirlBooks campaign. This #GivingTuesday, we ask for your support to establish and grow #BannedBook Clubs in New Jersey and Philadelphia. These clubs…

Literacy Heroes Project Launched!

The funding support from NEA helped the BIAJ to launch an important project - Literacy Heroes - with the goal to identify, highlight, and reward community volunteers and educators who have gone above and beyond to serve their students and communities.

SuperGirl Marley Dias hosts and executive produces a Netflix series

Bookmarks: Celebrating Black Voices is a live-action collection of twelve five minute episodes featuring prominent Black celebrities and artists reading children's books from Black authors that highlight the Black experience. The series premiered on 1 September and is available to watch globally on Netflix as well as Netflix Jr. YouTube channel. It includes 12 episodes, each around 5 minutes.

Marley Receives the Smithsonian’s American Ingenuity Award

It wasn’t the sudden dinner theater that got the crowd on its feet, though. The lone ovation was reserved for 12-year-old Marley Dias, who launched an initiative called #1000BlackGirlBooks out of frustration that most of the literature she was being assigned in her Philadelphia-area school “were about white boys and their dogs.” Her project set out to find—and donate—1,000 books with black, female protagonists; so far she’s collected 10,000. Click on the source link below to see full article and Marley's…

Marley Chosen for Forbes 30Under30

Thank you @forbes for choosing me for the#30under30 class of 2018 list! I’m thrilled to be the youngest on the list among other trailblazers#1000blackgirlbooks #forbesfamily #investingirls Source: Forbes

Marley Dias speaking at Liliuokalani Trust: WSJ article

November 13, 2017
Dr. Janice Johnson Dias
GrassROOTS Develops, GrassROOTS Informs, GrassROOTS News, Press

Now 12 years old, Marley has written the book she felt was missing from her school: a story about a black girl by a black girl. “Marley Dias Gets It Done: And So Can You!” is being published by Scholastic Inc. and will be released Jan. 30. Marley said she wanted to use her own experience in activism to show anyone can make positive changes in their communities despite their age. “I’ve always wanted to be an author,” Marley said…

Black Girl Book Club

September 1, 2017
Dr. Janice Johnson Dias
GrassROOTS Develops, GrassROOTS Engages, GrassROOTS News

SuperCamp 2017 was an incredible four weeks filled with learning, building, growing and leading. This year’s theme RESISTANCE exposed the girls to issues around bullying, white supremacy, immigration, the arts, and the legal system. SuperGirls heard from renowned scholars including Khalil G. Muhammad, PhD, Professor of History, Race and Public Policy at Harvard Kennedy School, Mary Stricker, PhD of Temple University and professionals like the Honorable Victoria Pratt from Newark Municipal Court and Public Relations Professional and cultural curator Tiana…

Books on the Beach

Books on the Beach Free community event Family- friendly Come grab and book and read with Marley Dias, author and founder of #1000BlackGirlBooks Inkwell Beach Oak Bluffs, Martha's Vineyard August 15th 10-12pm

Black Girl Book Club at the YMCA in Newark

GrassROOTS Community Foundation SuperCamp NJ in conjunction with Marley Dias’ #1000blackgirlbooks campaign present Black Girl Book Club at the YMCA in Newark Wednesday, July 12, 2017 Wednesday, July 19, 2017 Wednesday, July 26, 2017 Wednesday, August 2, 2017 Join us for reading and conversation. Bring a book where the black girl is the main character. We will talk about the book and discuss common themes. 3:15 pm-4:00 pm YMCA Newark 600 Broad Street Newark, NJ 07102…

Black Girl Book Club at the YMCA in Newark

GrassROOTS Community Foundation SuperCamp NJ in conjunction with Marley Dias’ #1000blackgirlbooks campaign present Black Girl Book Club at the YMCA in Newark Wednesday, July 12, 2017 Wednesday, July 19, 2017 Wednesday, July 26, 2017 Wednesday, August 2, 2017 Join us for reading and conversation. Open to kids K thru 8. Bring a book where the black girl is the main character. We will talk about the book and discuss common themes. 3:15 pm-4:00 pm YMCA Newark 600…