Pushing for Diversity in What We Read

This post is one that (I hope) makes you think. 

I would like you to do is: think of what the last book you read was about. 

Then ask yourself this: Were the characters diverse? Was the story diverse? 

Chances are that the story you read wasn't very diverse.  And you know what? That's okay. BUT we can do better by changing that!  

AS readers, we can pick up a book that has diversity woven through it.  

Remember: diversity in literature comes in different forms. Diversity is not just about stories that focus on main characters who are people of color or their cultural stories.  Diversity takes form in any other characteristics of a character- their sexual orientation or if they may have another medical conditions, just to name two characteristics. 

There is a bunch of articles out there that highlight the importance of having diversity in children's literature (including young adult).  There is even an entire organization dedicated to it - We Need Diverse Books! 

Those articles are able to better explain it and I'll link a few of them here:

Teachers Push for Books with More Diversity, Fewer Stereotypes

Why Children's Book That Teach Diversity are More Important Than Ever

Why Diverse Kids Books Matter 

Lee and Low each year publishes the statistics that accompany diverse children's literature.  These are the stats from this year- Where is the Diversity in Publishing? The 2019 Diversity Baseline Survey Results is DEFINITELY worthy of the read. 

The message across all of these articles? We need the diversity! Children and teens need to be able to associate to the characters in books but they also are able to use the characters that they can't directly relate to as a teachable moment. 

If you have read anything that fits what was discussed in the articles above, let  me know!  You can comment back or tweet me @blondewithabook

- Jillian