Eastern Missouri Girl Scouts Organize Diversity Book Drive
September 8 is globally recognized as International Literacy Day, a time to raise awareness and concern for existing literacy problems. Allison, Farah, Gina, and Chelsea, freshmen in the Parkway School District, used the skills they gained through the Girl Scout Leadership Experience to partner with KidSmart to increase the representation of people from diverse backgrounds in children’s books.
After recognizing the need for children with limited resources to see stories promoting acceptance and equality, Allison, Farah, Gina and Chelsea set out to organize a diversity book drive to earn the Girl Scout Silver Award. These young change-makers decided to use their passion for reading and community service to collect more than 75 books that covered topics such as people of color, the LGBTQIA+ community and people with disabilities as the main characters in the stories. The girls then donated the books to KidSmart, a local nonprofit organization that empowers children to succeed in school by providing free essential tools for learning.
“Only 21 percent of books are written about diverse characters,” said Chelsea. “However, 51 percent of America’s youth are children of color. Books allow you to see yourself in the story and explore who you are. But without diverse books, children of color do not have that mirror. I wouldn’t be the person I am today without the books I have read, and I want other children to have the same experience.”
The Girl Scout Silver Award is the highest honor a Girl Scout Cadette, girls in 6th-8th grade can achieve. It requires girls to identify a need in their community and dedicate on average more than 50 hours towards addressing and solving the issue. When Girl Scout Cadettes focus on an issue, they care about, learn the facts, take action to make a difference, and they gain the confidence and skills that catapult them to lifelong success.
