Defend Our Stories. Protect the Freedom to Read.

Diverse books are being banned. Diverse voices are being silenced. Together, we can stand up for every reader who deserves to see themselves on the page.

Defend Our Stories. Protect the Freedom to Read. image

Across the country, book bans and censorship are stripping shelves of diverse stories. Anti-LGBTQIA+ legislation is targeting authors and young readers alike. Racist and xenophobic rhetoric is spreading through classrooms and communities. Diversity itself is under attack.

At We Need Diverse Books (WNDB), we believe stories save lives—and no child should grow up without seeing themselves in the pages they read.

Here’s the truth: your support is absolutely vital in the work we do at We Need Diverse Books. Our Defend Our Stories fundraiser aims to raise $48,957 by December 31 to keep this work going strong in 2026.

When you give, you’re investing in the entire reading pipeline and helping us support:

  • The creators of diverse stories: You’re breaking systemic barriers for marginalized writers and illustrators so that they can share their stories with the world.
  • The workers who publish diverse stories: You’re helping diverse college students launch careers in publishing, shaping the books that reach our shelves.
  • The young readers of diverse stories: You’re putting thousands of free, diverse books into the hands of students—many written by the very creators you’ve helped us support.

With your gift, you safeguard this entire pipeline and ensure that diverse voices cannot be erased. Your gift to WNDB goes directly to work:

  • $10 — Puts one diverse book into a student’s hands.
  • $20 — Sponsors a Student with a Bookish Care Package: a diverse book, art card, and inspiring swag that reminds them their story matters.
  • $30 — Sponsors a Kid: brings an author visit + book to a child who’s never met a writer who looks like them.
  • $50 — Sends a bundle of bilingual or graphic novels to a classroom hungry for stories that reflect its students.
  • $100 — Equips an educator with diverse books and curriculum materials to make every lesson inclusive.
  • $500 — Funds one Emergency Grant for a diverse creator in crisis or sponsors a Native author at our Native Writing Intensive.
  • $1,000 — Sponsors a Mentorship for an aspiring writer or funds a virtual author visit + class set of books.
  • $2,000 — Funds one Walter Dean Myers Grant, helping a marginalized creator bring their story to life.
  • $3,000 — Provides an Internship Grant, launching a future publishing professional’s career.
  • $5,000 — Funds a Books Save Lives Grant, sending hundreds of diverse books to a school impacted by bans—or sponsors a classroom with a shelf, 100 books, and a virtual author chat.
  • $10,000 — Adopts a library: providing books, shelving, and reading spaces for a school that has none.

To donate by check, please make checks to We Need Diverse Books and mail to 10319 Westlake Drive #104, Bethesda, MD 20817. Thank you!

For questions, please contact Abbie Fine, Director of Development, at abbiefine@diversebooks.org.