Happy Juneteenth! Also known as Freedom Day, Jubilee Day, Liberation Day, and Emancipation Day. This holiday celebrates the emancipation of African Americans who had been enslaved in the United States. Although President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863, the news of this important decision didn’t reach Texas until June 19th, 1865....
The heart and soul of Read Your World Day lies in its reviewers. Without them, we wouldn’t be able to reach hundreds of homes, classrooms, and communities. They are the ones who receive the books, read them, review them, and share their insights using the hashtag #ReadYourWorld. Looking back over the past 13 years, many reviewers...
June is LGBTQIA+ Pride Month! Since 1970, LGBTQ+ people have gathered together in June to march with Pride and demonstrate for equal rights. The month of June was chosen to honor the 1969 Stonewall Uprising in Manhattan. The Stonewall Uprising was a tipping point for the Gay Liberation Movement in the United States. It was...
May is Mental Health Awareness Month! It was first celebrated in 1949 and commemorated by the Mental Health America organization. Mental Health America has led the charge to promote mental wellness during Mental Health Month for the past 76 years. The foundation was founded by Clifford Whittingham Beers. Beers, born in 1876, suffered from mental...
May 1st marks the start of Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) Heritage Month! Beginning as a week-long celebration in 1979, Presidents Carter, Reagan and George H.W. Bush continued to annually issue proclamations designating a week in May as Asian/Pacific American Heritage Week. The 1990s saw it become an annual event that lasted...