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The Tia Hamilton Plan
Named after our founder, Tia Hamilton: Brooklyn raised, formerly incarcerated, and the force who turned her own bookstore into a movement for literacy. Tiers don't fit everybody. That's the point. Pick the number that works for you and give it every month. Five dollars or five hundred, your gift keeps the Black Star Line rolling and free books in children's hands.
You choose the amount. Cancel anytime. Every gift is tax-deductible.
Octavia Butler
$10/mo
Honoring the visionary who wrote us into futures we deserved. Perfect for small recurring donors who believe in imagination, literacy, and possibility.
JoinGwendolyn Brooks
$20/mo
Honoring the first Black Pulitzer Prize winner who used poetry to teach, uplift, and witness. A beautiful tier for donors who want to support youth reading and writing programs.
JoinPhillis Wheatley
$25/mo
Honoring the first African American author of a published book of poetry, who learned to read and write while enslaved and became the origin of Black American letters. For donors who believe every child's story starts with the written word.
JoinGeorge Washington Carver
$50/mo
Honoring the educator who believed knowledge should uplift the entire community. Great for donors supporting community literacy events, book drives, and the Literacy Bus.
JoinBooker T. Washington
$75/mo
Honoring the man who rose from slavery to found Tuskegee and taught that education is the path to freedom. For donors building the skills and self-reliance of the next generation.
JoinIda B. Wells
$100/mo
Honoring the journalist who used truth as a weapon and literacy as liberation. Perfect for donors funding reading materials, workshops, and literacy access.
JoinCarter G. Woodson
$150/mo
Honoring the Father of Black History, who taught himself to read in the coal mines and gave us our story. For donors funding culturally grounded books and learning.
Join⭐ Best Value
James Baldwin
$250/mo
Honoring the writer who educated himself in the Harlem library and turned truth into literature. For donors who know a single book can change a life.
JoinFrederick Douglass
$500/mo
Honoring the ancestor who taught himself to read in secret while enslaved, then became the era's greatest writer and orator. For donors ready to move a whole generation.
JoinMary McLeod Bethune
$1,000/mo
Honoring the educator who built schools, institutions, and a legacy of Black excellence. Perfect for donors helping build and maintain prison libraries and youth literacy hubs.
JoinFor our biggest partners
Major Donor and Legacy Gifts
One-time legacy gifts from partners ready to fund prison libraries, keep our stories in print, and invest in youth.
Marcus Garvey
$2,500
Honoring the leader who taught us to read, organize, and build our own institutions. Ideal for partners supporting prison literacy visits, library building, and reentry literacy.
GiveMalcolm X
$5,000
Honoring the man who rebuilt his entire life through reading while incarcerated. This tier directly funds literacy programs in prisons and juvenile facilities.
GivePaul Coates
$10,000
Honoring the founder of Black Classic Press, one of the nation's oldest African American publishers, right here in Baltimore. A legacy tier for partners keeping our stories in print and in hands.
GiveReginald F. Lewis
$15,000
Honoring the first African American to build a billion-dollar company, a son of East Baltimore who turned vision into generational wealth. Our top legacy tier, for partners investing in our youth and self-determination.
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