Motivation Mondays! – Marley Dias

Black History Month (BHM) is a month where we honor our ancestors and people who sacrificed their lives for us to have a future where we could be free to be recognized and live as human beings. BHM serves as a reminder for us of what happened to our ancestors so history would never repeat itself.

Just like any 5th grader, Marley Dias had book reports and readings assignments for class, but realized the misrepresentation in many of the books accessible. Marley felt there should be more representation of black children, especially black girls in the stories. After growing tired of reading books about white boys and their dogs, eleven-year-old Dias started a book drive. Working along with 2 other friends, their goal was to collect 1,000 books in which black girls are the main characters. She then gave the books away to children in the U.S. and rural Jamaica.

This quote expresses how important representation is in our society. If we want to create a better future, we need to be open to learn and understand the whole truth about our past and present.

“For young black girls in the U.S., context is really important for them – to see themselves and have stories that reflect experiences that are closer to what they have or their friends have.

I’m hoping to show that other girls can do this as well. I used the resources I was given and I want people to pass that down and use the things they’re given to create more social action projects – and do it just for fun, and not make it feel like a chore.”

– Marley Dias

If you would like to donate books or follow up on the 1000blackgirlbooks campaign, click here.

Watch Marley promote her campaign here.

Stay motivated!

Generation W.E.E.E. Team

Sources:

1. Black schoolgirl starts campaign to find 1,000 books with black girl leads
2. #1000blackgirlbooks
3. Marley Promotes #1000BlackGirlBooks
4. Seeking black female role models, 11-year-old launches book drive

We are Generation W.E.E.E!

Welcome! We are Generation W.E.E.E.!

We have some great content that we will be posting shortly. In the meantime, please check out this intro about us! Please follow us on Twitter @GenerationWEEE and Facebook at http://www.Facebook.com/GenerationWEEE.

Generation W.E.E.E (Gen W.E.E.E.) began as a concept derived from concern of discrimination, hate, and injustice in many societies around the globe. A group of friends and colleagues from Long Island University in Brooklyn, New York envisioned a platform, where resources and programs could be accessible without costs. They agreed that education could be used as a tool to create solutions to the vast problems in our world, shed light on issues that aren’t being discussed or are deemed “unimportant” and are being pushed aside, and to create a better future for our generation and the generations to come.

Serving as the “middle man” platform, Generation W.E.E.E aims to provide a plethora of accurate and useful resources and tools for girls and young women, which can be applied to everyday life. We encompass the values of EDUCATION, EMPOWERMENT, AND ENLIGHTENMENT in our work to alter perceptions and create long lasting change (Hence, why we have the 3 Es in our name).

Why did we choose to focus on girls? As Brigham Young once said, “You educate a man; you educate a man. You educate a woman; you educate a generation.” Our organization’s focus is on girls because it is a common misconception that girls have the same issues as women. Education is key to empowering girls and young women, providing them with the confidence they need to be thriving members of society, which, in turn, benefits society as a whole.

“You educate a man; you educate a man. You educate a woman; you educate a generation.” – Brigham Young

The benefits of educating a girl are numerous, including: decrease in poverty, decrease in infant and maternal mortality, decrease in domestic and sexual violence, decrease in child marriages, safer sex, having smaller families, among many others.

To our present girls and future generations of women, know that knowledge is power and by being well-informed, you can improve your life and empower others to take action as well.

– The Generation W.E.E.E Team