A glimpse into Dr. Tyner's World
Introduction
There’s something in the air; energetic, whimsical and the sun is shining down on. With the many events happening within the city, there’s nothing more peaceful in tucking ourselves in spaces where we feel most alive, most supportive and overall, just grateful for our communities. Which is exactly how I described Dr. Artika Tyner’s energy in today’s event. Graceful as ever, she is very hands-on from lending a hand in passing food, greeting everyone that comes into the door, to even making sure the kids at the table enjoyed their meal.
Speaking to Dr. Artika Tyner is always a joy. I believe that we need more people like her. Her trailblazing, tackling things head on is an inspiration to many young individuals on navigating a world of uncertainty and to focus on the things in front of us.
What inspired you to launch Planting People Growing Justice Press and Bookstore, and how has the mission evolved since its founding?
Dr. Tyner: “I was inspired to create Planting People Growing Justice Press and Bookstore because of that simple notion that I was always heard my mentor state “You cannot be what you cannot see.” This compelled me to action. The idea that we had to see diversity in publishing, we had to see diverse stories in the pages of the book. Thinking about that, what an invitation to say that is the beauty of America that we can all come together, share about our culture, share about our history, and make an impact.
Books are invitations to do create change. If I look at what’s evolved and changed over time; it’s that we’re unapologetically on a mission to promote literacy and diversity in books. We are increasing the capacity to create community centric, culturally specific books. We went from producing 1-2 books a year to producing nearly a dozen a year. We went from an idea of building a youth anthology, getting young people to tell their stories, and then producing it. I would say we’ve grown in our community impact and we continue to grow.”
How do you see literacy as a tool for social change, and what role does your publishing house play in that movement?
Dr. Tyner: “Our notion is Leaders are Readers. It’s a notion that in order to be able to lead yourself and make a greater impact in your community, you need the core skills of literacy. Literacy is more than just the ability to read words on the page; it’s about the ability to reimagine the potential and possibility ahead.
So, when you think about that, our mission is truly grounded in this idea that societal change starts one story at a time. One story of hope, one story of peace, one story of justice, and one story of healing. We start with a story, and with that story, we build connection, and after building connection, we build community.”
What advice do you have for young people—especially BIPOC youth—who want to become authors, leaders, or change agents in their own communities?
Dr. Tyner: “My advice in all those categories would be the same; find a good mentor. I knew I wanted to write a book, and I didn’t know how to. And yes, you can google, yes you can look at YouTube and Tik Tok. I’m talking about not just how, but how to be successful in whatever you seek to do. You want to work with a mentor, because a mentor has already gone on the journey, gone down the road that you are embarking on.
For me, the first step I knew right away was to find my mentor, which mentor do I know that’s written a book? Justice Alan Page immediately came to mind. He has written many books and serves as a champion for literacy. I got him on the phone and asked him what his journey was. This is the power of connectivity. It provided the initial support and then it was my responsibility to take action. Once Justice Page taught me how to be successful as an author, connected me to my first editor, then I had the responsibility to do that for someone else. It’s a system of reciprocity, of how we’re all interconnected, how we can all share information and knowledge and how we can effectively build change.”
Can you share a moment from your work that reminded you why this mission is so important?
Dr. Tyner: “I would say there are many moments, but the most important moment is being an attorney. My clients, most of them, learn to read while in prison. They couldn’t read their indictments; they couldn’t read the evidence against them. But still yet, they continued the good fight of justice, the good fight of healing and the good fight of being a part of a community. Being in prison has taught me a lot about the transformational power of community. You often think that society has imprisoned someone’s body, but the soul and mind are always going through a regenerative process of reimagining life beyond those walls and what a future could be.
My clients taught me more than I could have taught them. I owe them to tell their stories. The Department of Justice even said that “the greatest indicator of future incarceration is reading failure” here’s our chance to create a new pathway. What if we go from reading failure to reading success? What can we build as a result?”
What are you hoping young and older individuals take away from Akua loves Math?
Dr. Tyner: “I hope that they can take away the possibility of a couple of principles. First, Philanthropy, we are brothers and sisters’ keepers. Therefore, we can create sustainable systems. We can help to build community in meaningful ways. The leadership challenge becomes: how do we truly do that? We take action by understanding that through reciprocity is said as a principle of Ubuntu (African Philosophy) “I am because you are.” How do we build together? From there, we next embrace the principles of cooperative economics. We must invest back in our communities, we buy local, we help to build local, and we help to create change.”
In the midst of chaos and uncertainty in today’s world, let this be a reminder that there is community, and we are in charge of creating a pathway for greater change and change comes within us. From here, we can only move forward.
Written by: Ninet Ayala