Focus on Black-owned Businesses: Elizabeth's Bookshop & Writing Centre one of few in Ohio

Be the change you wish to see in the world.

While at its core the philosophy is simple, putting action to the words is quite the opposite.

Nevertheless, that didn’t stop activist and writer Rachel Elizabeth Cargle, a native of Green, from opening one of the nation’s few black-owned independent bookstores.

In 2019, Cargle came back to the Akron area from New York City to be closer to her mother, who had fallen ill. She soon began to crave the indie bookstore experience that is around every corner in Brooklyn, New York – only to find that none existed in Akron.

“While I was looking around, I really couldn't find anything that both spoke to my desire to support a local bookstore as well as shelves that reflected the type of literature I was interested in and learning from, which included books and literature by people of color, by queer people, by disabled people,” Cargle said. “These marginalized voices that I like to learn from weren't as easy to find, and so I just decided to open (a bookstore) myself.”

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Of the nation’s independent bookstores, about 6% of them are Black owned, according to research compiled by WordsRated. An online book database called The African American Literature Book Club also reports that the number of Black bookstores peaked with at least 200 in the mid-’90s, before decreasing to just 54 in 2014.

Cargle’s store came to be Elizabeth’s Bookshop & Writing Centre, located in Akron’s Middlebury neighborhood within The Well Community Development Corp.’s Compass Coffee shop.

Since it opened in September 2020, Akronites have had at least one local bookstore to peruse shelves curated with Black, indigenous, disabled and queer writers and writers of color. Their genres include young adult literature, children’s books, non-fiction, science fiction, poetry and more.

OK, I’m at the bookshop. Now, what should I read?

At the moment, Cargle’s favorite reads are collections of Black feminist poetry by authors June Jordan, Nikki Giovanni and Akron native Rita Dove.

For those just entering the bookshop and writing center, she recommends picking up Passion by June Jordan, Our Work is Everywhere by Syan Rose or Nina: A Story of Nina Simone by Traci Todd.

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"... They are a great sampling of the types of marginalized voices and dismissed stories that Elizabeth's likes to highlight and celebrate like the poetry of Black women, children's books that center (on heroes) of color, history books that tell queer truths," she said in a statement. "The books that turn our attention away from the lens and invite us to really hear from each other in our own voices."

The business also sells goods from other small local businesses, including honey from Akron Honey, cornbread mix from Julia Belle's Seasonings and more.

Elizabeth’s Bookshop & Writing Centre events, pop-ups

Those books and poems don’t always stay within the shop’s walls.

Often, Elizabeth’s Bookshop & Writing Centre creates pop-ups at popular Akron-area events such as PorchRokr and the city’s Pride festival. Another, more frequent location for these pop-ups is The Nightlight cinema, where bookshop employees sell books with themes tailored to specific movies at nighttime screenings.

“We're finding different ways to be a community with our curated literature that really gives an elevated opportunity for people to engage with themes and events and opportunities around Akron,” Cargle said.

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A routine in-house event is the community story time reading on Saturday mornings. Local community members, like Theron Brown, a local jazz musician and professor at the University of Akron, read aloud to children and adults stopping by to grab a cup of coffee or browse the bookstore.

September Howat, the business’s director, said they also hope to bring in Tater Tot, Summit County Juvenile Court’s therapy dog, and his handler, Geoff Auerbach, for a Saturday reading.

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The future of Elizabeth’s Bookshop & Writing Centre

Cargle’s bookshop is connected to her various other ventures aimed at bringing opportunity and healing to communities of color. A percentage of book sales go toward The Loveland Foundation Inc. Therapy Fund for Black Women and Girls, a nonprofit founded by Cargle in 2018 to support Black women’s access to mental health services.

She is also the founder and CEO of The Loveland Group, a collection of social impact companies, including The Great Unlearn, an online learning space that provides resources and critical discourse with a monthly curriculum taught by Black academics and thinkers whose work points toward a more equitable future.

“I just want to continue introducing the community to these marginalized authors and finding more ways to gather people in the space to be able to share the joy of the literature and the joy of community,” Cargle said.

Contact Beacon Journal reporter Tawney Beans at tbeans@gannett.com and on Twitter @TawneyBeans.

At a glance

Business: Elizabeth’s Bookshop & Writing Centre

Owner: Rachel E. Cargle

Address: 647 E. Market Street, Unit 3, Akron

Website: elizabethsofakronshop.com

Social: facebook.com/elizabethsofakron

About the series

The Beacon Journal is profiling Black-owned businesses in Summit County. Read more of these profiles at  https://bit.ly/3jb0h1e. The Beacon Journal will continue to highlight minority-owned businesses as part of its ongoing regular coverage.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Elizabeth's Bookshop & Writing Centre offers books by minority authors