Our Story…

We are Kyra and Phallon Pierce, 10th grade identical twins, known as “The Pierce Twins.”  We are honor students, creative artists, and athletes who also love to read.

We were featured on the news after discovering a book on our 8th grade summer reading list entitled “And Then There Were None”, by Agatha Christie, was originally named “Ten Little N*****s”. The book was later changed to its current name. Upon researching the book,in addition to the original title, we learned there was a racist nursery rhyme that was a significant plot point. That sparked a need to provide context around racially insensitive books and add books written by diverse authors on our school’s summer reading lists.

This issue has inspired us to do more as we see the lack of diversity, specifically authors from multicultural backgrounds, on summer reading lists, elementary, middle and high school literature courses, and school libraries. We created an age-appropriate inclusive diverse book list for young readers, and we want to take our mission to help a broader audience. Students of all races should be exposed to various authors and experiences to help them learn and connect to others. Books that promote positive self-esteem, anti-bullying, contributions and experiences of African Americans along with other people of color, backgrounds and perspectives should be shared and embraced. This will also help kids to be more tolerant, inclusive, accepting, and appreciative of others. We believe this exposure will help young readers today be stronger leaders now and in the future.

We continue to promote social equity, wellness and literacy for kids and teens. As founders of Positive Change Charities, a 501c3 organization, we have provided over 2000 books written by multicultural authors to kids in need and underfunded school libraries to schools across Chicago and surrounding suburbs. We plan to expand our giving Nationwide in 2023. We are currently working with legislators on “The Pierce Twins Bill” that promotes adding books written by diverse authors to literary curriculums across the state. We are incredibly thankful for our family and everyone that has supported us on our journey.

“Stay Positive, Spread Love and Change the World”