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Cut & Paste: Children's book authors want kids to know Rosa Parks 'wasn't the end of the story'

This is a portion of the cover of the new "Standing Up for Civil Rights" book for children.
Provided | Missouri History Museum
This is a portion of the cover of the new "Standing Up for Civil Rights" book for children.

How do you condense more than 150 years of civil rights history in to a single book — and make it understandable and meaningful to a fifth grader?

St. Louisan Amanda Doyle and co-author Melanie Adams recently attempted to do just that, for their children's book,“Standing Up for Civil Rights in St. Louis.”  It starts in the 1800s with the stories of people who were enslaved, and ends with the 2014 shooting death of Michael Brown and the subsequent protests in Ferguson. But its message looks to the future, asking kids what they can do to change enduring problems facing African-Americans.

“Kids need to know that when Rosa Park sat down on the bus, that wasn’t the end of the story," Doyle said.

In our latest Cut & Paste podcast, we talk with Doyle and Adams about creating the book in connection with the Missouri History Museum's "#1 in Civil Rights" exhibition, and what they learned in the process.

St. Louis Public Radio’s Willis Ryder Arnold and Nancy Fowler talk with authors Amanda Doyle and Melanie Adams about their children’s book, “Standing Up for Civil Rights in St. Louis.

Look for new Cut & Paste (#cutpastestl) podcastsevery few weeks on our website. You can also find all previous podcasts focusing on a diverse collection of visual and performing artists, and subscribe to Cut & Paste through this link.

The podcast is sponsored by SPACE Architecture + Design.

Follow Willis and Nancy on Twitter: @WillisRArnoldand @NancyFowlerSTL

Please help St. Louis Public Radio find creative people to feature on Cut & Paste. Tell us which artists and cultural drivers deserve a closer look.

Copyright 2021 St. Louis Public Radio. To see more, visit St. Louis Public Radio.

Nancy is a veteran journalist whose career spans television, radio, print and online media. Her passions include the arts and social justice, and she particularly delights in the stories of people living and working in that intersection.
Willis Ryder Arnold is an arts and culture reporter for St. Louis Public Radio. He has contributed to NPR affiliates, community stations, and nationally distributed radio programs, as well as Aljazeera America, The New York Times blogs, La Journal de la Photographie, and LIT Magazine. He is a graduate of the CUNY Graduate School of Journalism and a recipient of the Society of Professional Journalist’s award for Radio In-Depth Reporting.