Junior Joseph Hancock Publishes Children’s Book on Diversity
Monday, November 29, 2021
A World of Color is the product of Hancock's passion to make the world a better place—and an abundance of time on his hands during the stay-at-home orders for COVID-19.
"With all the social injustices coming to light during the pandemic, I was inspired to write a children's book to teach children about being accepting of others' differences and appreciating the beauty in diversity," he said. "The children are the future leaders of the world, so it's important that they are exposed to positive messages regarding diversity and race early in life."
Set in an imaginary world where crayons compete to be the best color, A World of Color tells the tale of Scribble the blue crayon and his friend Dash who sits on a different row in the same box. Scribble assumed that Dash was blue like him since they were in the same box but learns to put their differences aside when he learns that Dash is yellow—the competition. When used together by Marcus, the character that owns the crayons, it becomes clear that when the different color crayons work together, something beautiful can be created.
Hancock shared, "Children should be taught to treat others with dignity and respect, and that is what I hope my book accomplished. The lessons kids learn now will stay with them for the rest of their life, so being exposed to these messages can lead to the next generation being more inclusive."
Hailing from Staten Island, Hancock stays busy beyond his studies as an active member of the Alpha Phi Omega service fraternity, a Peer Advisor with the Center for Academic Success and the vice president of the Biology Society, which provides students with opportunities to explore their interests in the field of biology.
Illustrator Becca Lippe and graphic designer Amanda Kwasny contributed to A World of Color. The book is available for purchase on Amazon here.
Categories: Arts and Culture
