Friend,

I have exciting news to share: We started Reading Opens the World last December with the goal of distributing a million books to our students, their families and educators to promote the joy of reading.

We did it. And now, because reading is so foundational to everything we do, we’re planning to distribute another million books in 2023. This time our goal is to do our part to create a nation of confident and joyful readers!

But we need your help. Creating classroom and home libraries is expensive. So this holiday season, please consider donating to Reading Opens the World, so we can continue spreading joy and helping kids thrive. Click here to donate.

When children see themselves in books, they feel seen, welcomed and loved. When children are introduced to others in books, they experience the wonder of new ideas. Books bring joy—and they really do open the world. That’s why as others are banning books and denigrating educators, teachers and their unions are continuing our efforts to create a nation of joyful and confident readers.

And communities love our Reading Opens the World fairs―we’ve held more than 200 events in 28 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Now we are taking this literacy effort to the next level: supporting educators and parents in the teaching of reading. Click here to donate and help us reach our goal of 2 million books in two years.

Throughout 2023, we will be giving out books and helping students recover and thrive—rebuilding relationships, focusing on the basics, investing in our kids and building confidence in reading. You can see all of our updates at aft.org/read in the coming weeks. We look forward to families, community groups and other partners joining us, in addition to our founding campaign partners, First Book and the AFL-CIO.

Your donations make this possible. Click here to donate and help us continue this important work.

Thank you for all that you do. And I hope you have a very happy holiday season!

In unity,
Randi Weingarten
AFT President