We won't let our history be erased!
In 2023, a record 4,240 unique book titles were targeted for censorship. That's a 128% increase over 2021 numbers.
Nearly half of the books targeted by these censorship attempts were books about the voices and lives of LGBTQ+ people and people of color.
But here's what we know: American history is LGBTQ+ history. It is Black history. It is the history of Asian-American, Latinx, Jewish, Muslim, Arab-American, and disabled people. It is the history of all of us - and we won't stand by while pro-censorship forces try to erase us from our history books.
That's why artist Meg Simons created the History Maker series - to highlight the amazing figures who helped shape the world we know today. Get to know their faces through her art, and check out the book recommendations to learn more about their legacy and continued impact on our lives.
The History Makers
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. led the Civil Rights Movement and fought for equal rights for Black Americans. He worked with people like Bayard Rustin, John Lewis, Fannie Lou Hamer, Rosa Parks, and others to push for desegregation, the right to vote, fair jobs and wages, and more!
Be like Dr. King — dream big and fight for justice!
Learn more about Dr. King's life and legacy
Dolores Huerta
Dolores Huerta created the United Farm Workers Union with César Chávez. She organized farm workers to fight for better pay and working conditions. Throughout her life, she fought for equal rights for women and Latinx people. She used the phrase “Sí, se puede” during her activism which means “yes, we can!”
Believe like Dolores.Sí, se puede!
Learn more about Dolores Huerta's life and legacy
- Side by Side/Lado a Lado: The Story of Dolores Huerta and Cesar Chavez/La Historia de Dolores Huerta Y César Chávez (Bilingual English-Spanish)
- Dolores Huerta: A Hero to Migrant Workers
- Lola Out Loud: Inspired by the Childhood of Activist Dolores Huerta
Dolores Huerta Stands Strong: The Woman Who Demanded Justice
Judy Heumann
Judy Heumann was called “the mother” of the Disability Rights Movement. She organized sit-ins and worked to get laws passed to improve the lives of disabled people across the world! She wanted to see “feisty disabled people change the world.”
Be feisty like Judy, and let’s make the world better together!
Learn more about Judy Heumann's life and legacy
Wilma Mankiller
Wilma Mankiller was the first woman elected as chief of a major Native American tribe and the first woman to be Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation. She spent her life fighting for the rights of Native people. She believed “the secret of our success is that we never, never gave up.”
You can be strong like Wilma, too!
Learn more about Wilma Mankiller's life and legacy!
Marsha P. Johnson
Marsha P. Johnson is credited with throwing the first brick at Stonewall and helping spark the LGBTQ rights movement as we know it today. In June 1969, police came into The Stonewall Inn in New York City and began arresting gay people just for being who they were. Marsha, Sylvia Rivera, and more fought back and said no!
Be like Marsha, and stand up for your community!
Learn more about Marhsa P. Johnson's life and legacy!
Kiyoshi Kuromiya
Kiyoshi Kuromiya was born in an internment camp in Wyoming. He fought for equal rights with Martin Luther King Jr., participated in some of the first protests for gay and lesbian rights, and advocated for people with HIV/AIDS.
Kiyoshi believed “information is power” — and we do, too!
Learn more about Kiyoshi Kuromiya's life and legacy
- Fish for Jimmy: Inspired by One Family's Experience in a Japanese American Internment Camp
- We Make It Better: The LGBTQ Community and Their Positive Contributions to Society
- The Early History of the Gay Rights Movement
- Be Gay, Do Comics
- Gay & Lesbian History for Kids: The Century-Long Struggle for Lgbt Rights, with 21 Activities Volume 60
Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha
Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha is an immigrant as well as a pediatrician, scientist, activist, and author. She exposed the fact that kids in Flint, Michigan were poisoned by lead in their water and fought to help them. She’s inspired many young people to pursue medicine, science, and activism.
Dr. Hanna-Attisha spoke truth to power — and you can, too!
Learn more about Dr. Hanna-Attisha's life and legacy!
- Poisoned Water: How the Citizens of Flint, Michigan, Fought for Their Lives and Warned the Nation
- What the Eyes Don't See: A Story of Crisis, Resistance, and Hope in an American City
- This Green and Growing Land: Environmental Activism in American History
- Advocate: A Graphic Memoir of Family, Community, and the Fight for Environmental Justice
- Learning, Recycling and Becoming Little Heroes