I think we can all agree that the future has looked somewhat bleak lately. Between domestic and international political tensions, rapid climate change, and the revelations that quite a few powerful and popular men are downright creeps, it can feel a little bit as if the world is spiraling out of control. Never fear, friend, for I am here to share with you a bright spot of hope that all may not be lost. That bright spot of hope is a thirteen-year-old named Marley Dias.
Featured on a recent episode of “The View”, Marley is an activist for change within the literary community. Tired of being presented with books that were about “white boys and their dogs,” she started a campaign in 2015 called #1000BlackGirlBooks. Her aim was to collect 1000 books that featured a black girl as the main character and donate them to schools; she wanted to see more diversity in the books on classroom shelves. As of June 2017, Dias had collected over 9000 books. On top of that, she was put on the Forbes 30 Under 30 list, and, as Jezebel points out, her age means that she has 17 more chances of being featured on the list. She is also ridiculously well-spoken.
Dias has also recently become a published author, with her debut book Marley Dias Gets It Done—And So Can You released just last month. The book “explores activism, social justice, volunteerism, equity and inclusion, and using social media for good,” and while it’s marketed as a kind of autobiography/social activism guide for kids, you can bet that I’ll be reading it. Dias’s campaign has also led to the creation of a resource guide that includes a searchable database of some of the books collected by the campaign.
Where does Marley find such enthusiasm and inspiration? It comes from her love of reading, she says, and from her belief that “frustration is fuel that can lead to the development of an innovative and useful idea.” Marley was faced with a problem, and she decided to solve it. What is most inspiring, though, is that Marley didn’t just solve the problem for herself or her own class by finding books for her specific classroom. Instead, she aimed to diversify the classroom libraries of schools around the country. Marley wants to fix the world, not just her world.
This is what makes Marley a bright spot in our future. She’s an ambitious problem-solver who sets high goals for herself—and she achieves them. According to Melissa Harris-Perry’s review of Dias’s book, “If you are standing near [Marley], you better roll up your sleeves, because she will make sure you help too.” It seems that Dias is a proponent of holding ourselves and others accountable in positive ways. There are other kids like Dias, too, who are working as activists in order to secure a better future for our nation and our world. These kids are the future leaders of our nation, and with them in charge, I don’t think we’ll have too much to worry about.
Image Credit: Feature, 1, 2, 3