Paula Yoo: How each of us can learn from diverse communities

I’m not only a writer, I’m also a reader. I read about other books, other cultures, other races, other communities, other diverse worlds because I want to learn and grow and be accountable and responsible and compassionate just like I hope people are doing the same for me as well, because we’re in this together and the next stage of fighting hatred is through solidarity.  
 

We have to sit back and absorb information and voices from community that are not our own. We have to remember that it can get confusing. The terms keep changing. The language is evolving. But the point is is that language is a living document; language is its own organism, and it grows and it changes with every historical event and it is our duty as compassionate human beings to always keep up and to be accountable and to be responsible. So that’s what I try to do with my books. That’s what I try to do when I read other diverse books from communities that I may not be from, but to understand better so I can be a strong ally and most importantly a friend.