Megan Mockerman

Mrs. Diana Watkins

Honors Composition I
20 November 2014
A Lesson on Compassion and Individuality
The Freedom Writers Diary is captivating; it is intriguing to know
that one teacher was able to change the lives of one-hundred and fifty
students. The vast majority of the Freedom Writers had lost their
innocence at a very young age, and they had only hoped to live long
enough to celebrate their eighteenth birthday. Erin Gruwell's attempt
was to change how they viewed their lives through the use of literature
and writing, but she not only changed how they viewed themselves but
how they viewed the world as well. Where most teachers would have
had a "don't bother" approach to the at risk students, Erin Gruwell
sacrificed her own personal time and reputation for her students. She
was compassionate toward her students and decided to help them find
their voice so that they could share their stories of social injustice and
inspire others to make a change in their own lives as well as the world.
That quality of selflessness, support, and compassion that Erin Gruwell
expressed toward her students seems to be severely lacking not only
in educators but in society as a whole, myself included.
As I read one of the stories in the book, Diary 111, I was in horror
and disgust. I couldn't believe all of the people involved in the sorority
allowed all of the horrific acts of hazing to occur. Other students stood
around the helpless freshman girls that were being initiated into the

sorority and did nothing to defend them. In fact, most of them were
making a joke of the entire situation. Then, I read the end of the entry
that stated, "I couldn't understand how I just stood by and let all of this
go on. I wish I had spoken up and told them how unnecessary all of this
really is" (Gruwell). After I read those sentences, I immediately thought
about a situation I was involved in during high school, and I realized I
was no better than all of those people that allowed those freshmen
girls to be harassed and humiliated.
While I was walking to the parking lot at my high school during
lunch one day, I passed a group of boys, who were known to be openly
discriminatory and confrontational, standing by one of the large trees
in front of my high school. Shortly after, I passed another girl in my
class that was walking in the opposite direction. She had played soccer
with me for a couple of years, so I had known her fairly well. She
always had a smile on her face, and she made others smile as well with
her kind personality. It didn't take long for one of the boys to yell to the
girl, "Do your parents know you're a fucking lesbian?" The girl just kept
walking, but I was immediately outraged because I could not
understand why anyone would feel the need to be so disrespectful to
someone that had never spoken a malicious word to them. Even
though I felt this way, I refrained from turning around to confront the
group of boys because I was scared of what they might say to me if I
had done so. I turned my head down, stared at the ground, and kept

walking forward.
Because of my fear to say something, I understand why some of
the students involved in or attending the sorority hazing did not say
anything. Like me, they were probably scaredscared of not being
accepted into the group of popular students if they had spoken
against what the popular students were wrongfully doing. However,
that does not make what I did or what those students did acceptable. I
had the chance to be a voice for someone, yet I stood by and did
nothing, and the students at the hazing had the chance to protect the
innocence of all those girls, yet they too did nothing. Allowing that
group of boys to display their uncompassionate behavior, made that
kindhearted girl at my high school to feel uncomfortable. If I had been
in her shoes, I would have wanted someone to speak up for me and
reassure me that not all people are uncompassionate like that group of
boys. People should not have to face ridicule for their sexual
orientation, race, ethnicity, background, socioeconomic status, or any
other factor of diversity. America is supposed to be the land of
opportunity and freedom to express individuality, but American society
is intolerant of individualism. As I continue to reflect on that situation, I
am ashamed because I did not have the courage to defend someone
that could not defend herself because she was tired of the frequent
ridicule. I should have had the courage to be supportive,
compassionate, and selfless like Erin Gruwell. Reading The Freedom

Writers Diary has inspired me to never stand on the sidelines again and
allow someone to be taunted for who they are or the lifestyle they
lead.
The Freedom Writers were successful in their goal of inspiring
others because The Freedom Writers Diary has moved me to become a
better person by standing up for my beliefs and by becoming the voice
of those that do not have the courage to stand up for themselves. If
America is truly the land of the free, then society must cast aside the
tendency of prejudice and recognize the need for compassion,
selflessness, and supportiveness. We must open our minds, and open
our hearts to those that are in need of a helping hand. If everyone
could become a catalyst for such a change, then the world would no
longer know intolerance, discrimination, or hate (Gruwell 152).

Works Cited
Gruwell, Erin. The Freedom Writers Diary: How a Teacher and 150
Teens Used Writing to Change Themselves and the World around
Them. New York: Doubleday, 1999. Print.