Welcome

First, thank you for visiting A Human Right: the Problems, the People, and the Hope of American Adult Literacy!

If you're reading this you are probably not one of the 30 million Americans - 14% of the population - who struggle with literacy, those American adults who strain to compare ticket prices at a baseball game, or read a TV Guide to see what time their favorite program comes on. They lack what UNESCO calls a "human right."

While this blog protests these rates of adult literacy in America, it is really an individual's call for individual action. Read about the problem, assimilate the troubling statistics, but then turn your eyes to the people who have triumphed over these numbers, the Marten Griego's and Rosseta Harper's. 

And then act! Becoming involved in literacy can mean contacting your elected officials or donating to a literacy organization. But it can also mean sitting face-to-face with someone who has struggled to read and write, opening them up to the the freedom, the joy, and the pleasure of starting to fully understand the written word for the first time.

This blog grew out of my own love of reading and writing, and the shock of realizing how many Americans struggled with the most basic tasks associated with both. This shock pushed me through the statistics to find the people, extraordinary stories that I hope will inspire you to protest this situation, and act for and with your fellow Americans who struggle with literacy.


Key information about literacy, including what I mean by this term, as well as the research that informs this protest is always available on the top tabs of this blog. Other themes are organized on the right side bar, and this main page will always be updated with new research, stories, and events. Participate in a poll, leave a comment, and pass on the information you learn here! Whatever you choose to do, I look forward to hearing your voices.


Sidney