Freedom Writer's Diary

A Book Review

As I read this book, I realized how amazed I was by these kids who grew up in some of the worst situations imaginable and still were able to become spokespersons for tolerance and change. It was all thanks to one woman, Erin Gruwell, who had the strength to lead them. She started them on the journey, and as a group, they kept up the momentum towards making a difference in their own lives and the lives of people around them. Erin guided them, but also allowed them to guide themselves – which is the mark of a good leader.

It all started with a simple question. “What’s the Holocaust?” Erin then asked if anyone had heard of the Holocaust. None had. She then asked how many had been shot at. Almost all the students had. From there, the students were introduced to Anne Frank’s Diary and “Schindler’s List”, where they saw parallels in their own lives. These kids who had every reason to give up or follow in the footsteps of everyone before and around them decided to take the lessons from the Holocaust and started looking at their own lives, how they acted and reacted in the world around them. They began to change how they thought about and saw everything.

They created a close-knit family, not by blood, but by a shared vision. They stayed together as a family and created a foundation that has impacted the lives of countless people. They continue to advocate for tolerance and change. They continue to be there for each other through life’s ups and downs – even 20 years later – and have added other people to their Freedom Writer’s family. They walk the walk.

The true-life stories in the book are heart-wrenching and powerful. They are also uplifting, in that they have a powerfully positive message. When Erin started teaching, I don’t think she had any idea that her students would go on to do everything they have done, starting from one small decision – making tolerance the core of her curriculum. Reading this book, I learned that it’s never too late to make a change towards peace in my own life as well as advocating for tolerance in any small way that I can.

Something that I’ve seen on social media a lot lately is “you never know what someone might be going through, so please be kind.” This is my new tolerance mantra while working. I answer phones 8 hours a day and callers can be particularly difficult at times. Using this mantra has helped me make sure I’m doing my best work on every call and the book was my inspiration.