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Literacy is and always has been a social justice issue. The denial of literacy has been used as a barrier to freedom, justice, equality, and civil rights. During the 1800s, slave codes were enacted to make it unlawful for black people to learn to read and write. During the 1950s and 1960s, literacy tests were given to suppress African-American voters.

TLC is part of the continual fight for equality by providing literacy education to adults and families in our community.   

TLC brings together people from diverse zip codes, racial backgrounds, and ethnicities to provide literacy services to fellow residents in our metro area. Our place is the point where their paths cross. We bring people together to help each other.  Many positive relationships are forged as a result. 

And now our nation and community must unite for our democracy and the equality of every resident.  We are writing history as we speak.  Let’s make it something our citizens will be proud to read.

Suggested Links

Dr. Martin Luther King’s Letter From a Birmingham Jail

Smithsonian Institute’s Literacy as Freedom

Literacy and Slavery

Slave Codes and Literacy

Alabama Literacy Test for Voting 

The Literacy Council is proud to be supported by a diverse board of directors and staff. Some of our education initiatives include adult basic literacy, English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL), workforce development/workplace literacy, GED, and family literacy. Additionally, TLC provides bias training to its staff and volunteers. TLC’s tutor book club is an enrichment initiative and includes the following books that we encourage everyone to read.

Just Mercy written by Bryan Stevenson, the founder and executive director of the Equal Justice Initiative. 

The Sun Does Shine by Anthony Ray Hinton. Mr. Hinton’s memoir of his wrongful imprisonment for 30 years for a crime he did not commit