For the past four years I've studied teaching and literature, I've taught my own students and spend most of my personal time with my nose in a book. Using diverse literature as a means of increasing understanding and compassion is something I'm incredibly passionate about, so naturally upon hearing that Trump had been named POTUS I immediately began thinking of titles I could incorporate in my classroom to keep out hate and bring in love. These individual's stories inspired me and gave me a better understanding of experiences that are less privileged than my own. In the past hateful leaders have burned books because "wherever books are burned, human beings are destined to be burned too", by promoting and circulating books such as these we can hopefully begin to make the world a better place.
(Due to living in Australia, many of these titles were also chosen with current Australian issues in mind.)
Yassmin Abdel-Magied: Yassmin's Story.
Yassmin is a hilarious, eloquent, fashionable and fierce woman who at 21 worked on an oil rig in rural Australia. In this environment she was the only woman, also facing discrimination for her hijab and Sudanese-Egyptian-Australian background. Yassmin details in this book how she wants to change the world. This empowering book calls for challenging and complete destruction of the racial and gender stereotypes that hold many people back.
Malala Yousafzai: I am Malala.
There would be few people to whom Malala is an unfamiliar face, the brave young girl who stood up for woman's rights to education and equality. This book is a reminder of everything that is often taken for granted: education, freedom of speech, freedom of religion and freedom not dictated by gender. The most outstanding part of this book for me was the discussion of forgiveness. Malala's passion does not come from a place of hate, her passion comes from a place of compassion and empathy.
Rae Spoon & Ivan E. Coyote: Gender Failure.
Rae is a gender retired musician and writer, Ivan is a transgendered spoken word performer and writer. This book made me laugh, feel sad, feel inspired, rethink how I view gender and read out long passages to anyone near me. The writing style of each person was absolutely beautiful and their personal stories were eyeopening and thought provoking. I feel as though this is a book every person should read.
Cheryl Strayed: Wild.
After losing her mother, Cheryl walked her way to recovery from grief on the Pacific Crest Trail, an incredible mental and physical achievement. In the novel Cheryl comes across many people doubting her ability (mainly men). This is an incredibly powerful and inspiring message about female courage, strength and capability.
In the novel, Jane describes the pressure put on her to abandon her studies in literature in order to better support her husbands work, which was deemed as more important. This is a great reminder of the hierarchy that exists between the arts and the sciences, particularly important in Australia at the moment with devastating cuts to the arts and creative industry which you can read about here, and here.
Chloe Hooper: The Tall Man.
A true account of Indigenous deaths in custody and the court trial of Chris Hurley. This novel speaks about police brutality, racial tensions and Indigenous spirituality. The book raises the issue that despite the fact Australian Prime Ministers may apologise and criticise things that have happened in the past, it is the present we need to be looking at, examining, questioning and fixing.
This is a small list, although I'm hoping it will be added to with suggestions in the comments. All of these books have made me question my world and inspired me to do all that I can to create a world in which love comes before hate.
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