You Can Be an Activist: How to Use Your Strengths & Passions to Make a Difference

There is so much to like about You Can Be An Activist: How to Use Your Strengths and Passions to Make a Difference, it is hard to know where to begin this review: organized, respectfully written at an appropriate grade level, engaging and fun text and illustrations, informative, helpful resources.

Author Charlene Rocha writes from her own experience as a student activist. Co-author Mary Beth Leatherdale is an award-winning author and editor. Together, they have written a handbook for activists that is enhanced with action-packed illustrations by Drew Shannon.

You Can Be An Activist: How to Use Your Strengths and Passions to Make a Difference” is organized into eight chapters which take readers from the recognition of their own strengths and passions, through the steps towards a successful activism journey. Each chapter includes ‘how to’ steps (How to organize a meeting, How to disagree productively); safety considerations (Before posting on social media); examples of the ‘ripple effect’ of individual actions (Community Connect project started in NB has spread around the world); and examples of change makers of all ages from around the world (Dr. Brent Hawkes found a way to perform the first same-sex marriage in the world in Toronto in 2001).

Each chapter closes with a section titled “Be a Changemaker” that deals with specific individual strengths and needs relevant to the focus of that chapter.

From Chapter 5 “Support”:

Be a Changemaker

You understand your privilege. You are committed to using your privilege and power to help others.

You stand in solidarity with others. You listen and learn, offering your skills and resources to support people and movements that have been marginalized, silenced or ignored.

You learn from your mistakes. You reflect on your actions and words, seeing them as an opportunity for learning. (p. 71)

You Can Be An Activist: How to Use Your Strengths and Passions to Make a Difference is told from a global perspective but filled with Canadian examples and references. Once your young activists-to-be discover it, you may have trouble keeping it on the shelf. You Can Be An Activist may be one of those books that warrants purchasing a second copy.