Early last week, Asha Grant launched a GoFundMe campaign to help bring The Salt Eaters Bookshop, an independent, Black-owned bookstore, to downtown Inglewood, Los Angeles, in 2021.
Grant plans to make The Salt Eaters Bookshop a Black feminist literary hub, emphasizing books by and about Black women and girls, femmes and non-binary folks. She is eyeing a 1,000-square-foot space in Inglewood that she called her "dream space," noting that it is located on Queen St., which "just feels right."
When in-person events can be held again, she intends to host plenty of children's events, including storytime sessions and book clubs for middle schoolers and high schoolers, along with poetry readings, author talks, teach-ins and watch parties. She also hopes The Salt Eaters will become a community hub for artists, activists, creatives and others interested in liberation practice.
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| Asha Grant | |
Grant set an initial fund-raising goal of $65,000, and in less than seven days the campaign was almost entirely funded (including support from actor Mandy Patinkin and author Roxane Gay). In just the first 48 hours, in fact, the campaign brought in more than $20,000, and as of this morning, it's raised more than $71,000. Grant called it an "incredibly humbling experience," adding that there's been "lots of crying."
"The love and support for our local community and from folks in different parts of the country has surpassed all my expectations," she continued. "People have donated proceeds from their businesses to us, sold clothes in their closet and donated the funds, offered résumé services in exchange for GoFundMe donations--it has been so much. I've never experienced such a widespread, collective, action-oriented effort around Black women, femmes and non-binary people. It makes me so hopeful."
Grant explained that owning a bookstore is a dream that she's kept "in my box of childhood dreams" for a long time. While she has no formal bookselling experience, she is not new to the book world. She described herself as a "humanities girl," with a degree in English and two minors, in Comparative Women's Studies and African Diaspora Studies. She also holds a Master's in education from Columbia University Teacher's College, with a concentration in Black Female Education and Literacy.
As for her professional background, she said she's "worked all over the place" and in a variety of roles--in retail, as a creative writing teacher, a digital media manager and a student services coordinator for a high school, to name just a few. In January 2019, she launched the Los Angeles chapter of the Free Black Women's Library, a pop-up book swap event where visitors can engage and trade books written by Black women, which met with huge support and pushed Grant "even deeper into the book and publishing sphere."
Grant has been looking for a space for a bookstore since last fall. As the community of the Free Black Women's Library continued to grow, the need for a physical space devoted to books written by and for Black women, femmes and non-binary people became abundantly clear. When the coronavirus pandemic hit earlier this year, Grant began to wrestle with the decision of putting this venture on hold. But the deaths of Breonna Taylor, Oluwatoyin Salau and an increasing number of Black trans women "lit a fire" under her.
When all is said and done, she hopes to create a "grounding and resting place" for Black women, femmes and non-binary people where their stories and voices are celebrated and no harm can come to them. --Alex Mutter