This year for Black History Month, the English Team is proud to spotlight three critical texts that are centered on the experiences of Black women and families. Each novel is a part of our Atlas collection, the purposefully chosen texts that comprise the literary experience of our secondary students (grades 6-12).
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
“She told him she was glad her pain would come to some good for someone.”
Henrietta Lacks was a poor, Black woman who unknowingly made multiple, groundbreaking contributions to modern science despite losing her own life to cancer and her family’s inability to afford health insurance. “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks tells a riveting story of the collision between ethics, race, and medicine; of scientific discovery and faith healing; and of a daughter consumed with questions about the mother she never knew. It’s a story inextricably connected to the dark history of experimentation on African Americans, the birth of bioethics, and the legal battles over whether we control the stuff we’re made of (Skloot, 2020).”
Why read The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
Henrietta Lacks’ experience still speaks to us in a myriad of ways- from the long-held skepticism of medicine in the Black community to the disparate healthcare for Black women that exists today. This text compels the reader to understand not only the past injustices of modern medicine but how that history has played a role in the current medical crises in communities of color. - Misti Morgan, YES Prep English Content Director
Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston
“Ships at a distance have every man's wish on board. For some they come in with the tide. For others they sail forever on the horizon, never out of sight, never landing until the Watcher turns his eyes away in resignation, his dreams mocked to death by time. That is the life of men.”
One of the most important works of twentieth-century American literature, Zora Neale Hurston's beloved 1937 classic, Their Eyes Were Watching God, is an enduring Southern love story sparkling with wit, beauty, and heartfelt wisdom. Told in the captivating voice of a woman who refuses to live in sorrow, bitterness, fear, or foolish romantic dreams, it is the story of fair-skinned, fiercely independent Janie Crawford, and her evolving selfhood through three marriages and a life marked by poverty, trials, and purpose. A true literary wonder, Hurston's masterwork remains as relevant and affecting today as when it was first published—perhaps the most widely read and highly regarded novel in the entire canon of African American literature.
Why read Their Eyes Were Watching God
“Because it is the story of a woman…by a black woman! So often, women in literature have been written about by authors who lived outside of their character’s skin. Janie, like the author Hurston, is an independent woman who fights to go in the direction of her dreams. Every young woman of color needs to read about that.” - Kellie Thompson, YES Prep Introduction to Rhetoric and Composition Teacher
A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry
“Well – son, I’m waiting to hear you say something . . . I’m waiting to hear how you be your father’s son. Be the man he was . . . Your wife say she going to destroy your child. And I’m waiting to hear you talk like him and say we a people who give children life, not who destroys them – I’m waiting to see you stand up and look like your daddy and say we done give one baby up to poverty and that we ain’t going to give up nary another one . . .”
Taking its name from the Langston Hughes poem, A Dream Deferred, this groundbreaking play is set on Chicago's South Side during the 1940’s. The plot revolves around the divergent dreams and conflicts within three generations of the Younger family: son Walter Lee, his wife Ruth, his sister Beneatha, his son Travis and matriarch Lena called Mama. When her deceased husband's insurance money comes through, Mama dreams of moving to a new home and a better neighborhood in Chicago. Walter Lee, a chauffeur, has other plans, however: buying a liquor store and being his own man. Beneatha dreams of medical school. The tensions and prejudice they face form this seminal American drama. Sacrifice, trust and love among the Younger family and their heroic struggle to retain dignity in a harsh and changing world is a searing and timeless document of hope and inspiration. Winner of the NY Drama Critic's Award as Best Play of the Year, it has been hailed as a "pivotal play in the history of the American Black theatre." by Newsweek.
Why read A Raisin in the Sun
“The play juxtaposes dreams with reality…it portrays the hopes and struggles of an African-American family that many of our students can relate to. There are people who still have dreams that have yet to come true. As long as there are people who still live in poverty, as long as there are people who dream, there will be relevance in a play like A Raisin in the Sun.” - Ogo Nwaneri, YES Prep teacher and Content Specialist
About the YES Prep Atlas
The YES Prep Atlas is a collection of diverse and purposefully-chosen texts that together form the literary experience YES Prep students engage in from grades 6-12. The title Atlas was chosen because it represents a collection of works representative of a variety of places and worldviews; in an atlas, you can find home and explore new places. To access or download a digital version of the YES Prep Atlas, click here.
2021 Black History Month campaign
Make sure to check out our other entries in YES Prep's 2021 Black History Month campaign, by clicking here.
About the Author
Misti Morgan is the English Content Director with YES Prep. A product of Houston public schools, Morgan began her career teaching middle school English to students who deserved to know more about their African-American and Hispanic heritages. Her career path then took her into administrative leadership in some of Houston’s most challenging schools. Joining YES Prep married both her love of English literature with her passion of equity in educational experiences. “As one who is charged with the responsibility of selecting diverse and rigorous texts for student achievement, I can think of no better way to prepare the next generation of independent thinkers and leaders.”