Say Something

Say Something

Picture book
The narrator of Peggy Moss' Say Something doesn't join in
tormenting the kid the other kids pick on. She feels sorry for him.
She also doesn't mess with the kid everyone calls names or the girl
who sits alone on the bus.
She learns that isn't enough on a day her friends aren't in
school and she has to sit by herself in the cafetoria. Some kids
start harassing her. No one steps in to help even though kids she
knows are at the next table over.
It takes strength and courage for kids to stand up for peers. A
lot of parents convey the message that as long as their kids aren't
the bullies, that's all they really can do. This book can help start
conversations that can empower formerly silent bystanders.
On a personal note, I have hit the point of accepting being white
(culturally, not genetically defined BTW). I am doing all I can to
make white privilege a thing of the past. I read voraciously and
convey information that many people don't know with friends, in
groups, and in newspaper opinion pieces. I review insightful books
for you, my readers. And I share my poetry. Yesterday I had the
privilege of reading my Except Perhaps The Serpant (a poem about
racism being in the North as well as South) to my friends in Black
Student Union. They are my favorite group to share with. They always
give me the precious gift of feeling that my words matter. One cannot
choose to be white. But one can choose how to perform whiteness:
positively (fighting for justice), negatively (preserving the status
quo), or inertly.
A great big shout out goes out to my friends in Black Student Union,
Wilson Center, Active Minds, Mind Spa, and all the amazing UMaine
groups fighting for a better future.
jules hathaway


Sent from my iPod