EAD!

Esther A. Heller Recommends:

Reading on Diversity
(and other topics).

General or Wide-range about Diversity

• Carr-Ruffino, Norma, Managing Diversity: People Skills for a Mulitcultural Workplace, 1998.
  A great resource! She has thorough information on diversity issues and chapters on specific groups. She debunks myths and provides respectful, useful advice on intercultural interaction.
  
• Cech, Maureen, Global Sense: A Leader's guide to Games for Change, 1996.
  There are over fifty activities designed to help adolescents deal with their biases. I think many can be adapted to adults as well. They're arranged according to levels of awareness.
• Creighton, Alan with Knivel, Paul, Helping Teens Stop Violence, 1990.
  
• Duvall, Lynn, Respecting our Differences: A Guide to Getting Along in a Changing World, 1994.
  Also designed for those working with youth, it has good awarenessbasic building with useful tips and activities for all ages.
  
• Lester, Joan Steinau, The Future of White Men and other Diversity Dilemmas, 1994.
  The best place to start learning "what it's all about".
  
• Pollar, Odette and Gonzalez, Rafael, Dynamics of Diversity: Stategic Programs for Your Organization., 1994.
  This is a "50 Minute Book". It's a good guide for a diversity "officer" or "committee" starting out.
  I've heard Odette Pollar on "Simplifying your life." She is a great speaker - sensible, humorous, knows how it goes.
  
• Takaki, Ron, A Different Mirror: A History of Multicultural America., 1993.
  It's what Bob Dole referred to as "rewriting of history". Takaki talks about the history of other ethnicities in this country. It's worth reading to understand where some of the anger must come from.
  

Communications and Conflict Resolution

• Fisher, Roger and Ury, William, Getting to Yes, Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In, 1991.
  
• Samovar, Larry and Richard Porter, eds, Intercultural Communications: A Reader, Seventh Edition, 1994.
  Contains good overviews as well as specifics on different cultures and co-cultures.
  
• Tannen, Deborah,
  • That's Not What I Meant! How Conversational Style Makes or Breaks Your Relationships with Others, 1986 ;
  • You Just Don't Understand: Women and Men in Conversation, 1990.
  • The Argument Culture: Stopping American's War of Words , 1998.
  Tannen is a linguist who has done extensive communications studies. John Grey covers some of the same material in Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus. I strongly recommend reading Tannen, not Grey.

By, about or for Women

• Angelou, Maya, poetry:
  • On The Pulse of Morning, 1993;
  • Phenomenal Woman, Four Poems Celebrating Women 1978/83/90/94.
  I've got but haven't read some of her autobiographical work. It's about her resistance as a black woman. I hear it's powerful.
  
• Asian Women United of California, Making Waves: An Anthology of Writings by and About Asian American Women, 1989.
  This book turned up while I was reading Her Face in the Mirror [see below]. It seemed like a good companion and proved to be so.
  
• Friedan, Betty,
  • The Feminine Mystique, 1983 (orig 1963);
  • "It Changed My Life", 1991 (orig 1963);
  • The Second Stage,1991 (orig 1981).
  I read The Feminine Mystique back around 1969 and was amazed by it. It still holds up quite well, as apparently is Betty Friedan (I saw her on a Firing Line special and she was great!)
  
• Gelles, Edith B, PORTIA: The World of Abigail Adams, 1990.
  A different type of biography, it's more of a relationship style, looking at things and saying "and here the feminist view is..." I loved it.
  
• Kaye/Kantrowitz, Melanie, The Issue is Power: Essays on Women, Jews, Violence and Resistance, 1992.
  This book really got to me in several areas. It's from Aunt Lute Books. They have a wonderful offering.
  
• Moskowitz, Faye, ed, Her Face in the Mirror: Jewish Women on Mothers and Daughters, 1994.
  This book insisted, several times, that I buy it. It was right. It contains essays, short stories, poetry and lots of different mothers and daughters.
  
• Pogrebin, Letty Cottin, Deborah, Golda, and Me: Being Female and Jewish in America, 1991.
  
• Rosenwasser, Penny, Visionary Voices: Women on Power, 1992.
  The cover says "conversations with shamans, activists, teachers, artists and healers." Rosenwasser did a series of interviews with an wonderfully diverse group of women with an enlightening set of perspectives.
  

Adolescent Girls

• AAUW Report, How Schools Shortchange Girls,1995.
  A study of major findings on girls and education. Commissioned by the AAUW Educational Foundation and researched by the Wellesley College Center for Research on Women.
  
• Debold, Elizabeth, Wilson, Marie, and Malave, Idelisse, Mother Daughter Revolution: From Good Girls to Great Women, 1993.
  Covers the same ground as the others but they propose solutions and resistance strategies. Currently, my top pick.
  
• Pipher, Mary, PhD, Reviving Ophelia: Saving the Selves of Adolescent Girls, 1994.
  I'm suggesting this to parents of all of my Girl Scouts and anyone who works with adolescents.
  
• Orenstein, Peggy, SchoolGirls: Young Women, Self-Esteem and the Confidence Gap, 1994.
  She did direct observations of girls in co-ed schools in two very different communities.
  
• Sadker, Myra and David, Failing at Fairness: How America's Schools Cheat Girls,1994.
  The title says it all. It's a must for anyone who cares about teenage girls or former adolescent girls.
  

  This one is for the girls, especially early adolescents.

• Dee, Catherine, The Girls' Guide to Life: How to Take Charge of the Issues that Affect YOU, 1997.
  Sprinkled with cartoons, this has activities and strategies to help girls recognize and deal with the issues themselves. It's quite consistant with what I try to do as a Cadette Girl Scout leader.
  

Magazines

• moXie
• Ms. Magazine
• Tikkun