Call and Response: The Story of Black Lives Matter
By Barbara Saunders,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Beautiful book of photojournalism covers BLM's roots.
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What's the Story?
CALL AND RESPONSE: THE STORY OF BLACK LIVES MATTER is a nonfiction book that chronicles the Black Lives Matter movement and its lineage in the U.S. civil rights movement that began in the mid-1950s. It includes narration and photographs as well as interviews with Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors, and Opal Tometi, founders of the Black Lives Matter movement ,and profiles athletes, musical artists, and others who embrace activism.
Is It Any Good?
This beautiful, visual book of journalism connects the dots between history, current events, and how kids can empower themselves. In Call and Response: The Story of Black Lives Matter, Veronica Chambers (Finish the Fight!: The Brave and Revolutionary Women Who Fought for the Right to Vote) tells the origin story of Black Lives Matter and provides context in historical and current events. One strength of the book is explaining the importance of social media in the rise of the Black Lives Matter movement and comparing that to how iconic civil rights leaders of the past -- Martin Luther King, Jr., Rosa Parks, the Greesnboro Four, and the Freedom Riders -- communicated with each other in the days before social media. They effectively impart the message that while tools and can be useful, strategies and relationships are more important.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about what leadership looks like in Call and Response: The Story of Black Lives Matter. What does it mean to lead? Have you ever stepped into a leadership role at school or in your community?
How did the photographs contribute to your understanding of the events and people described in the text?
Did the interviews with movement leaders near the end of the book change the way you perceived the stories you read?
Book Details
- Author: Veronica Chambers
- Genre: Media
- Topics: Activism , Great Boy Role Models , Great Girl Role Models , History
- Book type: Non-Fiction
- Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Versify
- Publication date: August 17, 2021
- Publisher's recommended age(s): 10 - 18
- Number of pages: 152
- Available on: Hardback
- Last updated: September 27, 2021
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