Urban Reads Foundation was created from lived experience and a commitment to disrupting the literacy barriers that have held our communities back for generations. What began with a broken system that denied people access to knowledge became a foundation for restoring it.

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Our founder, Tia Hamilton, returned home from jail determined to create a pathway forward for incarcerated individuals to learn something different, and she committed to building it.

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Urban Reads Foundation grew into a grassroots, boots‑on‑the‑ground foundation restoring power through access, information, and real opportunities to learn. We show up in neighborhoods, schools, juvenile facilities, detention centers, and community spaces because access shouldn’t depend on where you live or what you’ve been through.

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Today, our work includes free libraries, Freedom Through Literacy initiatives in prisons, community workshops, book giveaways, and the Black Star Line Literacy Bus, powered by Urban Reads Bookstore, a mobile literacy hub that brings books, resources, and opportunity.

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Our mission is clear: restore power, expand access, and make literacy a right, not a privilege.