Children's Book teaches Black Boys To Treat Black Girls With Respect

Source: q: who am i? | A

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

One word that is such a crucial and powerful tool in life, without it what does one have really?

​In the black community, let alone any community there is an underlying issue of colorism. Where women of lighter skin tones are perceived as the ones who are sought after, “wifey material” while women with darker skin complexions are viewed entirely different. 

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There have been countless studies, documentaries, and testimonials made surrounding this issue and artist Lawrence Lindell decided that it was time to let black girls know that they are worth more then what society chooses to spoon feed them to believe.  

Lindell created the children’s book “From Black Boy with Love” which contains 24 pages of illustrations of young boys expressing uplifting messages of love to young black girls.

According to the HuffingtonPost, Lindell, who is a Compton, California, native, is all too aware of the toxic mentality some black men and boys hold toward black women and girls. He told The Huffington Post last week that the book is actually an “alternative to what [he] learned as a young boy.”

Source: The Huffington Post Image: Lawrence Lindell

As a youth art educator, he too frequently sees children berating others with one of the first targets of mockery being a darker skin tone.

Lindell told the HuffingtonPost,“The first thing they go for when teasing each other is hair, body shape and skin tone,” Lindell said. “’You ol’ nappy-headed, black-ass charcoal looking girl,’ ‘with yo ugly fat ass.’ We have to change the narrative that the more melanin you have means you’re uglier and that natural hair is bad or improper.”

​This message that Lindell is hoping the youth with catch onto is so crucial at an early age. Especially with our current political office, more racial disparities against black women are sure to be had. 

He wanted for the black boys reading the book, to learn to respect all women, but in particular, black women.

If not anything else, his message is, “Black and brown boys, treat all girls with respect, but especially the ones who look like you, sound like you, live where you live; we have to take care of each other.”

Black women deserve the respect they are expected to give out. Treat our black women with love in a society that was conditioned not to do so.