Sarah Rising Read online

  $18.99

  TY CHAPMAN

  is a Twin Cities-

  Chapman / Wiley

  based author,

  poet, puppeteer,

  “We HaVE TO KEeP eACh OTHER SaFE

  and playwright

  of Nigerian and

  AnD STAnD UP FOR WHaT'S RIGHT.”

  European descent.

  He is passionate

  about art that speaks to the Black

  experience in America. His recent

  accomplishments include being

  PRaiSe FoR SaRah RiSinG:

  When police kill a Black

  named a Loft Literary Center Mirrors

  man in her city, Sarah and

  and Windows fellow and publishing

  “Sarah Rising is a book that both illuminates inequality poetry through multiple journals.

  her dad join the community

  and reassures Black children that they are not alone.”

  to protest. On this sad and

  —Bao Phi, author of A Different Pond, a Caldecott Honor scary day, Sarah learns the

  and Ezra Jack Keats Honor book

  DeANN WILEY

  true meaning of community

  is a Detroit-based

  artist who has

  and what it means to keep

  “Sarah Rising shows us that in sad and scary times, we can care for one been painting

  one another safe.

  traditionally for

  another in the most profound ways. And that is how communities rise.”

  over five years.

  —Mol y Beth Griffin, author of Ten Beautiful Things She recently

  broke into the

  “Sarah Rising is a striking debut that explores what one father digital art world and shares her

  artwork with a large online audience.

  and daughter do to confront injustice. This is a much-needed and She is an advocate for social justice

  powerful picture book.”

  and is dedicated to making art

  that is authentic and intentional in

  —John Coy, award-winning children's book author empowering Black, queer, fat, and

  disabled people.

  JUVENILE FICTION / SOCIAL THEMES /

  PREJUDICE & RACISM

  by

  illustrated by

  Ty Chapman

  DeAnn Wiley

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  by

  illustrated by

  Ty Chapman

  DeAnn Wiley

  beaming

  books

  MINNEAPOLIS

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  Text copyright © 2022 Ty Chapman Illustrations copyright © 2022 DeAnn Wiley

  Published in 2022 by Beaming Books, an imprint of 1517 Media.

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced without the written permission of the publisher. Email [email protected].

  Printed in the United States of America.

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  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: Chapman, Ty, author. | Wiley, DeAnn, illustrator.

  Title: Sarah rising / by Ty Chapman ; illustrated by DeAnn Wiley.

  Description: Minneapolis, MN : Beaming Books, an imprint of 1517 Media, 2022. | Includes bibliographical references. | Audience: Ages 5-8. |

  Summary: Inspired by the Minneapolis uprising after the killing of George Floyd, this story follows a little Black girl attending a protest with her father and realizing that she has the power to protect what and whom she loves. Includes author’s note.

  Identifiers: LCCN 2021028764 (print) | LCCN 2021028765 (ebook) | ISBN

  9781506478357 (hardcover) | ISBN 9781506478364 (ebook) Subjects: LCSH: Protest movements--Juvenile fiction. | Fathers and daughters--Juvenile fiction. | Missing children--Juvenile fiction. |

  African American girls--Juvenile fiction. | CYAC: Protest movements--Fiction. | Fathers and daughters--Fiction. | Lost children--Fiction. | African Americans--Fiction. | LCGFT: Picture books.

  Classification: LCC PZ7.1.C4847 Sar 2022 (print) | LCC PZ7.1.C4847

  (ebook) | DDC 813.6 [E]--dc23

  LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2021028764

  LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2021028765

  Hardcover ISBN: 978-1-5064-7835-7

  eBook ISBN: 978-1-5064-7836-4

  VN0004589; 9781506478357; MAY2022

  Beaming Books

  PO Box 1209

  Minneapolis, MN 55440 -1209a

  Beamingbooks.com

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  For Philando Castile, Jamar Clark, George Floyd, Winston Smith, their families, and Black people everywhere.

  —T.C.

  For Mama Rachelle, Mama Candy, Jasmine, Raquel, Genesis, Trevon, Destiny, and Bailey.

  —D.W.

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  My morning started like any other.

  I ate most of my toast before running

  out the door to find food for my pets.

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  Once I found enough leaves,

  I fed them to my beetles, and I

  put some toothpaste in my ant farm.

  They like it! Don’t tell my dad.

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  With everyone fed, I started getting ready for school.

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  But then, Dad came into my room.

  He said I wasn’t going to school today.

  “Sarah, we’re going to a protest.”

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  Dad told me that the police had killed another Black person.

  “They’re supposed to serve and protect us,” he said, “but they hurt us instead.

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  “That’s why we have to keep each other

  safe and stand up for what’s right.”

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  Soon we saw a huge crowd of people. They were all shouting for justice. I grabbed Dad’s hand, and we walked into the crowd.

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  It was loud and scary, but I knew I was safe with Dad. He held my hand tight and began yelling

  with the crowd, “No justice, no peace!”

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  I almost shouted too, but then—

  a monarch butterfly flew right past me!

  I followed the butterfly as it fluttered

  above the crowd toward a big building . . .

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  . . . until it flew right in front of a cop’s face.

  He jumped back, like he was stung by a wasp.

  He smacked the colorful monarch out of the air.

  It fell to the ground and didn’t get back up.

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  I knew I had to do something. We have to keep

  each other safe and stand up for what’s right.

  I ran toward the butterfly.

  The cop started shouting.

  “GET BACK!” he roared.

  He looked at me like I had

  do
ne something wrong.

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  I ran back into the crowd, pushing past people as tall as trees.

  A cop’s job is to protect us, so why do they hurt us, instead?

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  I ran until I felt safe. Then I realized I didn’t know where Dad was. I was scared and alone.

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  I shouted for Dad for a long time,

  and for a long time, I didn’t find him.

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  Suddenly, one of the very

  tall people knelt down.

  Their face was full of worry,

  and they were holding a big sign.

  They asked if I needed help,

  and I told them what had happened.

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  They let me sit on their shoulders,

  so I could see over the forest of people.

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  They kept me safe while we searched

  and shouted. But we couldn’t find Dad.

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  Until suddenly, I heard my name! Then I saw him! I jumped down from my person-perch and ran to give Dad a big hug.

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  We stayed at the protest for a while. This time I held his hand tighter and yelled with the crowd, “No justice, no peace!”

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  We got home just before the sun

  went down, and after dinner I went

  straight to bed.

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  I wasn’t really sleepy. It had been a sad and scary day.

  But Dad said, “It’ll be okay. I’ll keep you safe, just like you kept your butterfly safe. The sun will rise in the morning, like always.”

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  And it did!

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  In the morning, I ate most of my toast before running out the door. I fed my pets their favorite snacks.

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  And after a few days, my colorful monarch was all better!

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  I set it free outside and watched it fly

  far away from anyone who would hurt it.

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  Author’s Note

  When I was young, my mother and I lived in eastern Texas. We enjoyed our lives there, feeding our neighbor’s horses, eating wild blackberries, and living surrounded by nature. Until James Byrd Jr.

  was murdered by a hate group near our home on June 7, 1998. My mother moved us across the country in hopes that I would live a full, happy life. We wound up in Saint Paul, Minnesota, where I found the arts and went to much more diverse schools. But I also grew to see that cruelty toward Black people was not just a southern issue.

  Beginning in elementary school, I was treated differently in classes due to the color of my skin. In high school, I watched resource officers use unneeded force on Black teens regularly. As an adult I, along with many other Black people, have experienced countless traumas as Black folks around the nation are murdered by police.

  The Minneapolis-Saint Paul metro area is one of the most unequal cities in the nation in terms of wealth, education, and police violence. Today, the median Black family in the Twin Cities area earns $38,178 a year—which is less than half of the median white family income of $84,459 a year. Also, the incarceration rate of Black people in the Twin Cities is eleven times that of white people, despite Black people only making up roughly one fifth of the population.

  The Twin Cities has lost many Black lives at the hands of police.

  While only 20 percent of Minneapolis’s population is Black, roughly 60 percent of police-reported uses of force target Black people, SarahRising_FINAL.indd 36

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  the most high-profile of these cases being Jamar Clark (murdered November 15, 2015), Philando Castile (murdered July 6, 2016), George Floyd (murdered May 25, 2020), and Winston Smith (murdered June 3, 2021). When George Floyd was murdered by Minneapolis police, our city and our nation had finally had enough. Minneapolis’s Black folks and their allies demanded justice—but those demands were met with more violence at the hands of police and hate groups.

  During the racial uprising, it became clearer than ever that the police were more interested in protecting property (and white supremacy) than they were Black lives.

  What kept many people going each night was the promise of the sun rising in the morning and the support of the community.

  Minneapolis came together in a way I had never seen. Strangers became neighbors, neighbors became friends, and plans were made to protect as many people and homes as possible. Without the police to count on, a city came together to keep one another safe. It is more important than ever to take care of each other and speak out against injustice—in our homes, schools, neighborhoods, states, and nation.

  When we cannot trust the police to protect us, we must keep each other safe.

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  You Can Help

  There are many ways to create change in your communities, from small acts of kindness to big gestures of solidarity.

  You can do things like these:

  • Speak up for classmates who are being bullied (for their race, their gender, or any reason).

  • Have difficult conversations at home about race.

  • Read books by BIPOC (Black, Indigenous,

  and people of color) writers and books

  about their experiences.

  • Ask your teachers difficult questions about race and history.

  • Encourage friends and family to treat BIPOC

  individuals with kindness and respect.

  • Make friends with people who are different from you.

  • Make posters about racial equality.

  • And above all else, be ready to learn! Keep an open mind about race issues and the hardships that other people experience.

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  Discussion Guide for

  Parents and Educators

  Talking to kids about race, racism, and violence in policing can seem daunting. Kids of any age can start learning about this difficult reality. It’s okay if you don’t have all the answers. You can be a safe person for kids to talk to about this topic just by listening and caring.

  Here are a few prompts and tips to guide your discussion: Talk about the Story

  Ask: How did this story make you feel?

  Ask: What questions do you have about this story?

  Ask: How did people help each other in this story?

  Do police help or hurt?

  In this story, Sarah’s dad says that the police are supposed to “serve and protect us, but they hurt us instead.” Police officers work in partnership with communities to uphold public safety, peace, and justice. They fight against crime and help to keep people safe.

  People have been hurt as a result of police misconduct, abuse, and racial bias. Nearly 1,000 people are killed every year d
ue to police-involved deadly use of force (specifically, shootings). People of color experience this violence more often. Black men are 2.5 times more likely to be killed by the police than white men.

  The Say Her Name movement shed light on the untold stories of Black women who have been killed by the police, like Breonna Taylor.

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  Why do people protest?

  Protesting is an act of standing up for what you believe in. People lift their voices for justice by peacefully marching, singing freedom songs, and holding up their fists together in solidarity. Protesting is just one method of nonviolent resistance. Other methods include boycotting, sit-ins, and mass petitions.

  Protest is also a way to challenge a system and create change. During the Silent March of 1917, nearly 10,000 Black Americans marched in Harlem. Children and women dressed in white marched. They wore white to symbolize the innocence of the Black community killed in East Saint Louis as a result of racial terrorism. They marched in silence holding signs that read “Make America Safe for Democracy” and “Thou Shalt Not Kill.”

  This was one of the first mass protests in US history.

  Continue the Conversation

  Talking about racism and police violence with kids is not a one-time conversation. If you need more resources, connect with an educator, librarian, or local activist with experience in talking about racial injustice with kids. Just like in this story, there’s a community of people around you ready to help.

  Dr. arTikA r. tyNer (a.k.a. miSs FreEdom FighTer, esquire) is a passionate educator, an award-winning author, a civil rights attorney, a sought-after speaker, and an advocate for justice who is committed to helping children discover their leadership potential and serve as change agents in the global community.

  She is the founder of the Planting People Growing Justice Leadership Institute.

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  $18.99

  TY CHAPMAN

  is a Twin Cities-