Black-owned bookstores face unprecedented demand

June 24, 2020

Americans seeking to educate themselves and come to terms with the nation’s racial legacy are turning to Black-owned bookstores. The surge in demand has brought welcomed sales to many independent stores, but has also created a fulfillment challenge.

“We have had a huge financial boost,” said Danni Mullen, the owner of Semicolon Bookstore in Chicago. “We went from moving 3,000 books a week to 50,000 books a week.”

Titles including “How to Be an Antiracist” by Ibram X. Kendi and “So You Want to Talk About Race” by Ijeoma Oluo have been propelled to best-seller lists in recent weeks.

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