Fiction to Action: YA Literature to Inspire Social Activism by Dr. Alice Hays

This week Dr. Bickmore's YA Wednesday gets the benefit of another scholar who presented at the YA Summit. Dr. Alice Hays provides some wonderful insight about one of the topics she passionately pursues. Dr. Hays carefully outlines how she works to engage students social activism.

Fiction to Action: YA Literature to Inspire Social Activism by Dr. Alice Hays

As we are gearing up to begin school (or already facing week 3 of looking at your fresh-faced, bright-eyed students,) you may be thinking about how you can engage your students or get them to take a more active role in their education. One way to do this is to shift the dynamic of the classroom to a more student-centered one that may result in getting the students to work harder than you in the long run.
 
Six years ago, I realized my senior composition course had become stale. I taught the assignments as isolated writing types and as a result, it had become a skill-based course in which none of us (teacher or students) were engaged.  This lead me to ponder how I might shift the dynamics of the classroom.
 
I attended a symposium where I heard about someone who focused their writing course on following the journey of a students' t-shirts. While the book they used wasn’t YA (Where Am I Wearing, by Kelsey Timmerman), it was accessible for students and encouraged them to think about the global impact of their choices. I thought it was a brilliant idea. I wasn’t sure that all my students would be as interested in the same thing, though, and I wanted to provide as much choice as I possibly could. When I thought about what I really wanted my students to learn, I realized that beyond becoming better writers and researchers, I wanted them to be prepared to make a difference in the world.  As a result, I decided to center my course around activism. I tied all of our learning goals to this idea of preparing my students to become active citizens within our society. We wrote narratives on our involvement with a social issue, we researched social issues, we gave speeches about our social issues to our class, to the school and to the community. The final project was for each student to develop an action plan addressing the issue they learned about throughout the year. Students then carried out their plan to the best of their abilities. 

That senior composition course was more successful than any I’d taught prior to that semester, and I realized my students were hungry to complete authentic assignments, make a difference in the world around them, and have a sense of control over where they focused their attention. Fast forward three years and I found myself guiding other teachers in this curriculum with a new and exciting twist – the addition of young adult literature.
 
I am fortunate to work with several teachers in both middle school and high school who allowed me to come into their classroom and share my love of activist oriented curriculum with their students. These teachers have used this approach as full semester projects, as well as short-term projects. They all gave their students the opportunity to choose their research topics, time to read relevant novels in small groups, and a chance to develop (and sometimes implement) action plans to address the social justice issue they researched. The addition of young adult literature allowed students with little experience with the issue to develop a stronger sense of identification and empathy for the problem, while allowing students with experience in the issue to see that they were not alone.

Some of the issues that the students focused on included immigration, refugees, racism, religious discrimination, environmentalism, poverty, mental illness and abuse. The books that we used follow. 

High School Books

All American Boys by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely focuses on parallel narratives of two boys who share similarities, but are initially placed on opposite sides of a racism/police brutality issue.  Rashad is the victim of a brutal beating by a police officer due to a minor collision followed by a false accusation by a store owner. Quinn is the young man who witnesses the beating, and recognizes that his best friend’s older brother is out of control. The story follows both of their stories as they figure out what their role is within this situation, and how each one of them needs to come to terms with the way they must stand up and say something regarding the situation.  This novel is particularly powerful in that it is an acknowledgement of the pain behind the racism some of your students may have experienced, and gives them an opportunity to share and discuss their experiences. This novel also allows students who may not believe that racism exists (or that victims of police brutality have somehow brought it upon themselves) to enter the space gradually, which may prevent them from putting up defenses to the overall message.  Students who read this novel completed action plans that included putting posters around school, creating a mini-documentary of racist experiences their peers had, and traveling to various classes to show and discuss the realities of racism in the community. 
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Does My Head Look Big In This  by Randa Abdel-Fattah explores a young woman’s decision to begin to wear her hijab after winter break, exploring issues of religious freedom. This 16-year-old girl realizes that it will be difficult to walk into school wearing this expression of faith so openly, and even her parents are concerned for her decision. Ultimately, she decides to do it, and the novel explores the surprising and not-so-surprising reactions of people within her community. Students who read this book drew connections between their own faith and hers, and were cognizant of the fact that they appreciated their ability to demonstrate their faith in fairly external ways and felt that this same level of equality should be extended to all religions. These projects remained focused on spreading awareness through Twitter pages and Wix websites.  If you are interested in discussion questions for this book, the Multnomah County Library has created a set of discussion questions here: https://multcolib.org/does-my-head-look-big
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Openly Straight by Bill Konigsberg is a book that twists the typical LGBTQ coming out story upside down. In this book, Rafe is sick and tired of being the token gay kid at school. He has extremely supportive parents, and everyone at his fairly liberal Colorado high school accepts him for who he is, but he is tired of having to be the voice for every gay kid in existence. He persuades his parents to let him travel across the country to attend a boarding school where he presents himself as straight. The novel is both humorous yet painful, as you experience Rafe’s struggle with hiding who he truly is. Students who read this book developed a deeper understanding of some of the difficulties of being LGBTQ in a heteronormative society, even if they had already been an LGBTQ ally.  Projects completed by students who read this book included starting the Gay Straight Alliance (GSA) club on campus and creating a magazine focused around the documentary-style interview of a transgendered wrestler from the school. 

​Kingsley by Carolyn O’Neal is an environmental issue based novel, which is focused on the experiences of 14-year-old Kingsley, who is the last boy who was ever born on Earth. This dystopian novel is focused on the events that occur after the final bee colony has collapsed, and there is now a virus that is attacking the Y-Chromosome. While the book is much more dense in terms of the writing style and vocabulary  than the other books in this grouping, the students who chose to read it were not put off by its relative difficulty.  The projects proposed for this novel included raising awareness, with an emphasis on planting trees as well as creating a community “bee garden”. 

Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell was the novel read by students who chose poverty as the issue they were interested in addressing.  In this novel, Eleanor is somewhat of a social misfit who struggles to fit in. When she is ostracized by others on the school bus, Park reluctantly lets her sit by him. The two of them strike up a relationship, and over the course of the novel, Park realizes that this girl is experiencing poverty, and he questions whether he can help her to overcome this issue. The students who read this book are exposed to the concept of poverty indirectly, which may allow them to more deeply empathize with the awkward Eleanor and her struggles before brushing her off as too different from them. Students who read this book focused on spreading awareness about poverty or volunteered at charitable organizations such as the United Food Bank. 

​It’s Kind of a Funny Story by Ned Vizzini focuses on mental illness and is a semi-autobiographical novel written over the course of one month, after Vizzini was released from a mental institution. In this book, Craig Gilner checks himself into a mental institution after considering suicide. Craig struggles with pressures to be successful in his highly competitive prep school, coupled with friends who just don’t get it. He turns to art as a means of coping and discovers a few things about himself.  This book has been interesting in that everyone I’ve interviewed who chose this book, or one about mental illness, has confessed to struggling with their own issues. This is a powerful book that ends with hope, although I do have some concerns that students who research Vizzini may become discouraged at the fact that he did ultimately commit suicide years later. In discussing this with students, however, they do not seem to be as bothered by it. It may be that it is validation that mental health must continually be nurtured, and it is not a one-time fix issue. Students who chose this issue tended to focus on spreading awareness of facts about depression or mental illness or sharing resources for people who might need this help. 

The Good Braider by Terry Farish depicts the travels of a refugee, Viola, and her mother, from South Sudan to Cairo and then to Portland, Maine. The novel manages to convey the critical necessity behind why they left their home without being overly graphic, and explores the struggles Viola faces as they begin their journey as refugees.  The plot spends quite a bit of time in a refugee camp, an experience that is often glossed over in American news narratives and can be eye opening for many students. Farish’s writing allows students to more fully understand an experience that they may be completely unfamiliar with. Students who read this book focused on projects that included working with charitable organizations, and one student hosted a pots and pan drive for refugees in her community. 

​Chinese Handcuffs by Chris Crutcher focuses on abuse of all types. Chris Crutcher draws on his experience as a family therapist to create characters who are realistic and who are dealing with the nitty gritty details of trauma such as incest, rape, suicide and emotional abuse. While this book is graphic and somewhat difficult to get through, it is important to note that Chris Crutcher has written his books to provide a mirror for students who have been through those situations in order to let them know that they are not alone.  In this particular book, Dillon Hemmingway is a 16-year-old athlete who is a kind person, but is dealing with his brother’s unexpected suicide. He is also dealing with his attraction to his friend, but is confused by her sudden change in behavior, which the reader later discovers is a result of sexual and domestic abuse.  An interesting reaction one student had in reading this was that she could understand how some people might find solace in drugs or alcohol if their lives were that bad, whereas previously she couldn’t understand why anyone would touch those things. It was an unexpected form of empathy for people that she had previously judged.  Students who have read this book have tended to focus on projects that spread awareness of the issues to people who may not understand these various types of abuse. Additionally, they often focus on creating websites as resources for students who may need help in dealing with any of the types of issues encountered in the book. 

Multi-Age Book

​The Circuit by Francisco Jimenez is a semi-autobiographical piece and is an incredibly powerful book to share with students who are interested in immigration issues.  In this first book, Francisco describes his journey to America, and the struggles his family endured to survive. He spends quite a bit of time discussing his experiences in education, and students who have had their own language struggles, or their own immigration experiences will see themselves reflected in this story. Those students with no real understanding of immigration beyond the inflammatory rhetoric in the news will get an opportunity to see the humanity behind the rhetoric through this child’s story.  Students who have read The Circuit have focused on raising school supplies for students like Francisco, or on providing more English Language Learner support at their schools. 

Middle School Books

​The following books were ones that have been utilized for 7th graders. While the students read the books and conducted research on their issues, most of them did not conduct action plans as the high school students did, although the discussions they had from the book were powerful. 

Stella by Starlight by Sharon Draper focuses on racism. This novel is set immediately following Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s election and the KKK makes an appearance in their sleepy town, causing a great deal of fear for Stella and her family. Sharon Draper writes about the segregation they experience in a straightforward realistic manner, which is important for young readers’ understanding. Throughout the novel, Stella realizes that writing may be one of her powers to help her get through the evil she and her family are experiencing. Students who read this book indicated that the book was powerful and inspired them to want to take action to stop racism. 

​It Ain’t So Awful, Falafel by Firoozeh Dumas focuses on Cindy, who has moved to California from Iran to avoid political upheaval. The novel is set in the 1970’s and is an interesting exploration of the inner turmoil experienced by this family as their home country is turned upside down while they are simultaneously unable to fully fit into their new country. While Cindy’s tale is well written, younger students may not have a frame of reference for the Iranian upheaval to make an in-depth connection with the story, although there is certainly room to draw comparisons. 

Hoot by Carl Hiaasen is an ecological mystery novel that centers on a family of endangered miniature owls whose home is at threat of being destroyed by Mother Paula’s All-American Pancake house. The main character, Rob, is a boy who recently moved to a new school, and in trying to avoid a bully, he ends up meeting his two new friends who join him in their thrilling adventure to try to save the owls.  Interestingly, the students I interviewed had chosen the environment as their chosen social justice issue, and they did not feel like this was about the environment. In choosing a book for students who are interested in the environment as a social justice issue, it might be important to clarify if they are interested in a book like this that deals with animal rights, or if they are wanting something that deals more with the actual climate.  Carl Hiaasen has also written Flush, which deals with water pollution, and might be a better choice for some students.  

​Crenshaw by Katherine Applegate deals with poverty and homelessness through the narrator, Jackson, and his imaginary cat friend, Crenshaw. This book elegantly depicts the human faces behind the people on the street corner and shows how families are not immune from losing everything, no matter how loving or decent they are. Jackson copes with the poverty by relying on Crenshaw for emotional support. This book will give students an opportunity to live through the experiences of this family in and out of homelessness while being able to relate many of their typical family issues to themselves. This book is appropriate for students as low as 4th grade, although the 7th graders who read this novel did enjoy reading it, because they could relate to the situations depicted, and the relationships between the son and father in the book. 

​Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus by Dusti Bowling deals with physical disabilities, and to a lesser extent bullying. This book was selected from a list of books that deal with mental illness, although there are only brief mentions of anxiety in the book.  In this book the protagonist, Aven, enjoys telling people that she lost her arms in any number of ridiculous ways, such as losing her arms in an alligator wrestling match. In truth, she was born without them, and has learned how to cope quite efficiently. She ends up at a new junior high, and meets two other students who are also struggling with their own issues that cause them to feel like outcasts. Together, the three of them solve a mystery and find friendship. Through their combined disabilities, they grow stronger together. While we originally read this book for mental illness issues, the students took a sense of empowerment away from their reading. They focused on the bullying and admired the way that Arven and her friends bonded together to fight off the issues. 

​Ghost by Jason Reynolds is the first in a series of books that focuses on a group of kids who make a middle school track team. In this book, Ghost began running when he ran away from his father who was trying to shoot him and [his mother? His brothers?] in the street, but over time, he began to be the one causing his own troubles. His coach is determined to keep Ghost from throwing away his shot at success and works to help Ghost escape the abuse he is trying to run from. 

Things to Consider

This list of books is not exhaustive, and the topics of books that you might use should come from the issues that your students identify as important and needing to be addressed. There are two important things to consider with using young adult literature for social activism. One is that the reader be able to identify in some way with the characters, which makes YAL much more powerful than nonfiction research on its own. The second thing that students identified as much more important than just reading was actually being asked to identify an action they might take.
 
As I reflect on my own quest to create a more active and student-centered classroom, I am grateful that I gave myself and my students permission to break out of our traditional approach. Seeing my students come alive when they presented their findings, and get involved in the community was more of a reward than any set of A papers had ever been. It is my hope that you, too, have a positive experience with curriculum like this.
 
Whatever you choose to do, I hope you have a fabulous school year!