Fresh Ink: An Anthology

Lamar Giles, the editor of Fresh Ink, is one of the founding members of the nonprofit organization We Need Diverse Books, which dedicates its efforts to promoting diversity in young adult literature. Its central goal is to provide young readers with stories that reflect their own lives, struggles, and accomplishments, specifically for those of varying ethnicities, genders, and sexualities, communities that have historically been ignored in literature. To accomplish this, they set up grants and funding for writers, provide mentorships, and created a list of available works available for schools, parents, teachers, libraries, and others who have an interest in promoting diversity for young readers. The Fresh Ink: We Need Diverse Books Anthology exemplifies the efforts of the We Need Diverse Books organization: The organization’s members helped fund and promote the book’s publication through Penguin Random House.

The stories in the collection explore the lives of young people from a wide variety of backgrounds, including different sexual orientations, gender identities, and ethnicities, reflecting the central goal of We Need Diverse Books. For example, “Erase Tattoo,” “A Boy’s Duty,” “Tags,” and “Super Human” examine the lives of young African Americans as they struggle against forces of gentrification, unhoused status, urban violence, and police shootings. “Don’t Pass Me By,” “Why I Learned to Cook,” “A Stranger at the Bochinche,” “One Voice,” and “Paladin/Samurai” look at the lives of immigrants and young adults from different cultures as they explore their roots and discover the power of knowing where they come from. “Meet Cute” addresses the struggles of queer teens and relationships, “Catch, Pull, Drive” explores a teen’s struggle both before and after revealing their transgender identity to their teammates and family, and “Be Cool for Once” examines gender and self-doubt. Each story presents a young adult who is “different” than the straight, white, often male figures who have typically been the central characters in literature for centuries. Thus, the stories strive to help teens who struggle to come to terms with their own identities (and often face societal opposition, “othering,” and discrimination) by providing relatable characters and stories that model acceptance, support, comfort, and strategies for navigating their own unique lives. In addition, the book’s stories present characters and situations that are relatable for a wide range of readers, promoting greater compassion and sensitivity toward minority groups and emphasizing why inclusion is important to people from all walks of life.

Many other organizations besides We Need Diverse Books work toward similar goals, pushing against a widening conservative mindset in the US, to preserve the progress of past decades while striving for even greater advances in representing diversity in books and education. For example, the International Literacy Association emphasizes the importance of a broad definition of diversity in literature. Inspire Culture examines how diversity in literature has evolved throughout history, the impact of different literary genres, contemporary authors’ contributions to expanding societal acceptance of cultural diversity, the importance of translation, and literature’s role in increasing cultural sensitivity and acceptance, while also emphasizing the importance of addressing challenges such as stereotyping and cultural appropriation in constructive and respectful ways. In addition, universities often provide forums to stimulate discussions about diversity. Such efforts help continue conversations about representing diversity in literature and help prevent the destructive influence of fear, misunderstanding, and false or outdated narratives.