Tampa City Councilwoman Gwen Henderson opens Black author-focused bookstore this weekend

Kyla Fields

There are only a handful of independently-owned bookstores throughout Tampa Bay, but a new Tampa Heights business is about to add one more to the list.

Black English Bookstore—which will focus on fiction and nonfiction works by Black authors—celebrates its grand opening on Saturday, Dec. 2 at 401 E Oak Ave.

It’s the passion project of Tampa city councilwoman Gwen Henderson, who has been working towards the debut of her own independent bookstore for many years now.

“I am determined to amplify voices and pay tribute to our ancestors who were unable to read and write. One of them is Sam Hightower (1860-1932) my great-great grandfather and I will read for him,” Henderson wrote about her new business. “With this purpose and bookish joy, Black English Bookstore (BEB) was born and I’m her shopkeeper.”

The store will boast a wide variety of books for all ages, with Henderson, 58, telling Bay News 9 that “98% of the books are African American or Black-authored books.” Out of 1,700 books on her shelves, Henderson says about 700 of them are aimed towards children, touching on topics like Black hair and self-love.

A special selection of “banned books” will also be available for purchase.

“There are no banned books at my store—they are all liberated!” Henderson, who grew up in the “height of integration,” tells Creative Loafing Tampa Bay with a laugh. “Not every book in my store is necessarily a ‘Black book,’ but if that work is being sold here, it will be integrated with the rest of the books.”

Henderson also created a special sticker for books that were written by Black men who graduated from HBCUs (historically Black colleges and universities), to help promote reading within Black communities.

In addition to being a retail bookstore, Black English will serve as a community space for different types of events, too. It will also boast a few shelves where other women-owned businesses can display their products, as well as hosting two coffee pop-ups on the weekends: Rise Koffee + Kulture (which was supposed to open a brick and mortar in Ybor City) and The Coffee Divas.

Henderson says the name of the business was inspired by a 1970 essay by James Baldwin titled “If Black English Isn’t a Language, Then Tell Me, What Is?,”where he explored the relationship between language, the African American diaspora and racial oppression.

Henderson has lived in Tampa for the past 32 years, teaching at Hillsborough County Schools for a majority of that time. She is also Tampa’s District 5 councilwoman since May of this year.

In the two years leading up to her book store’s grand opening, she sold select books at local literary festivals and events throughout Tampa, in addition to running an online store.

“Our mission is to promote the reading culture. We foster curiosity, gift young readers books through sponsorships, highlight HBCU alumni authors, proudly sell and display banned books, and connect the great pastime called “good conversation” through Black English,” Henderson writes about her soon-to-open bookstore. “I am very proud to be a Black woman and I am creating a space that me and others like me want to experience.”

For the latest updates on Tampa’s newest bookstore, head to its Facebook or Instagram page, both at @BlackEnglishBooks.

Starting this week, Black English Bookstore will be open from 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday, 1 p.m.-5 p.m. on Sunday and will be closed every Monday and Tuesday.