Authors of privilege, when you feel left out of the "new rise of diversity lit" (which, as data shows, is NOT actually rising),

think about all the years, decades, generations, the rest of us were erased from cultural offerings.

Or vilified in order to serve dominant narratives

To this day, that's the case for us.

There are still movies & books being produced right now where the only function of Muslim characters is to serve as a foil for an American savior (*cough* "Extraction" etc).

Any chance we get to change this reality should be boosted.. yet

we often don't get those boosts - except from other marginalized creatives.

Personally, my first main boosters were my teachers and profs of Jewish backgrounds. They helped me get my foot in the door in publishing.

Now too, it's my fam from BIPOC communities who ally & rally.

Maybe it's easy for us to recognize each other's otherness.

Since becoming an author, I've seen the resistance among the privileged, who fear the door being open even a fraction to let our narratives in.

And I see and treasure those who use their power to keep the door open.