SEATTLE — Kristina Clark said Juneteenth was the perfect time to contemplate her new reading room and book store.
“This is something I’ve been working on for the past decade. Before I was even a mother. This idea came to me when I was working at Garfield High School,” Clark said.
The idea evolved from “The Living Room” to “The Loving Room” and will become a reality this summer.
Loving Room: Diaspora books & salon will be more than just a community book store. The gathering space will be located in the heart of Seattle’s Central District and aims to be a Black-owned community reading room featuring various genres of literature by Black and African writers for readers of all ages. Clark said she “aspires to cultivate a space for collective Black ancestral healing and transformation through a commitment to Black literature and African diasporic decolonial aesthetics.”
Clark said the reading room is inspired in large part by her family's heritage and has a black and white photo of her father and his family in Georgia.
“My father was born in 1917 and many people see this picture and assume it’s my grandfather or something, but to me it’s a reminder that the history we are reflecting on is only a generation removed for my family,” Clark said.
Clark was adopted and raised in Ballard.
“A lot of my motivation for piecing together this space of community - this space of belonging - is something that I did not experience as a young person," Clark said. "I want my children to know that and to feel seen, welcome, honored, safe and dignified.”
Clark said her vision for Loving Room is built upon the shoulders of the many who came before her.
“I want to bring my father's legacy into the space and to amplify the work so many great authors and artists have had, even right here in the Central District,” Clark said.
Estelita’s Library is an example of a local cultural community space, Clark pointed out. The community library and online bookstore features books focused on social justice, ethnic studies, and liberation movements.
“Hella Black books by the Black book fairy Joy Sparks is also an incredible project and she’s another mother who is is promoting literacy and engaging in Black stories and narratives.”
The Loving Room is currently in the final fundraising stages and hopes the community support will increase the book selection and event and programming available in the reading room.
“Our public programs will include a weekly children’s story hour, youth read-aloud, and young writers’ club, while our monthly offerings will consist of our teens’ book club, grown folks’ book club, poetry soirées, film screenings, and more," said Clark.
Loving Room: Diaspora Books & Salon is set to open in August at 1400 20th Avenue in Seattle’s Central District.