2019 MLA Annual Conference

In 2018, Erin Entrada Kelly won the Newbery Medal for her novel Hello, Universe. This recognition of a Filipina American writer's book brings Asian American voices into the public eye. Celebrating authors with awards is just one aspect of reading and understanding the work of Asian American writers in children's publishing and public libraries, though. We trace the long history of Asian American youth literature, highlighting the social forces that create cultural meanings of Asian Americans. Our discussion covers stereotypes (perpetual foreigner, model minority, terrorist), representation (who gets to tell stories of individuals and communities, with an emphasis on the #OwnVoices and We Need Diverse Books movements), and the industries that make literature possible (publishing houses with their editorial staff, booksellers and distributors, libraries and librarians, etc.). We provide action steps for librarians and other educators to assess their collections, programming, and outreach to align with anti-racist social justice goals.