Inglewood, CA is getting a new book store! The Salt Eaters Bookstop is in the works and it’s geared toward being a unique and vital space for Black and POC people in the Los Angeles area. The Founder, Asha Grant, has always envisioned a space filled with books by and about BIPOC children and adults. Now, what she dreamed about is coming into being!

The Vision

The bookshop-to-be is deeply rooted in and inspired by author, Toni Cade Bambara’s book by the same name. For Grant, “Toni Cade Bambara serves as a constant reminder of what is possible… Her book, THE SALT EATERS (1980), provided my first in-depth, and, admittedly, destabilizing look into the murky waters of mental health for folks that looked like me and expanded my understanding of wholeness (“not a trifling matter”), interdependency, astrology, Black feminism, and beyond.” (more on Asha’s thoughts in this Instagram post)

The Salt Eaters Bookshop will be an inclusive space that’s still by and for Black women and girls. Asha shared that she wanted to create a space that felt like a home for books created by and about “Black women and girls, femmes, and non-binary folks.” To do this, she needed the support of the community to make this space possible.

The bookshop has recently taken social media by storm with the fastest small business crowdfunding initiatives I’ve ever seen.

Photo: Asha Grant setting up The Free Black Women’s Library LA Book Drop Box

The Crowdfunding Mission

Asha Grant who is also Head of the LA chapter of The Free Black Women’s Library, set out with an intention to raise funds for her emerging brick-and-mortar bookshop. As a volunteer for the LA Chapter’s Free Black Women Library, I was eager to learn about Asha’s next endeavor. I could tell something intriguing and community-focused was cooking from her social media posts before the official announcement was dropped on Instagram. In just a matter of days, her goal of reaching $65,000 in funding was met!

In early July, the crowdfunding began. In just 48 hours around $20,000 was contributed! This was mindblowing! I watched every day as the milestones in funding were hit. After donating, I shared the new messages on Instagram where all the action was happening. Seeing this process take place was profoundly inspirational. Asha’s wish manifested and proved, once again, that social media can be an incredible galvanizing force right in our community. At the heels of Black Lives Matter protests and social unrest, The Salt Eaters Bookshop campaign seemed to waken people’s spirits to support and encourage a Black-women owned space.

If you scroll through the list of donors on the Go Fund Me page, you’ll be wowed by how many people far and wide contributed. Prolific author, Roxane Gay donated and tweeted about The Salt Eaters to urge others to donate. 

The next week after the crowdfunding started, the goal was exceeded. The bookshop has raised over $80,000 since.

A Dream Is Manifesting!

What seemed to catch people’s attention and put the word out about The Salt Eaters Bookshop, was Asha’s transparency in her goal. Grant clearly laid out what she would need to succeed in a detailed plan of action. She was determined to stand outside of the statistic that “only 0.2% of all venture capital funding was allocated toward startups founded by Black women” (research sited by Grant from ProjectDiane.) I, for one, was excited to be a part of the crowdfunding. I can imagine the thousands of other donors and supporters felt the same.

The bookshop will be settled on Queen St. in Inglewood. Keep your ears tuned for news on when this literary hub will open its doors. I certainly can’t wait to see the space alive with people reading, girls smiling while views brown girls on pages, and even pop-up events once this lockdown is behind us. 

According to The Los Angeles Times, Grant expects to open an online store in November and complete renovations for the bricks-and-mortar shop by early next year. See Asha’s feature in The LA Times for more details on her story and thoughts about her new baby, The Salt Eaters Bookshop!

Feature photo credit: Asha Grant, near the Queen Street location where she plans to open her bookstore, the Salt Eaters.(Gabriella Angotti-Jones / Los Angeles Times)

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Best,

Kai