Human library opens book on diverse set of student stories
School media specialist got idea from nonprofit in Denmark
A trip to Jordan opened up a whole new world without Wi-Fi for Sarah Alsheikh, and she wanted to share it with her classmates and teachers at Oak Lawn Community High School.
“I started watching cable TV, I read books, I drew, I went outside,” Alsheikh said. “I did all the things kids don’t do here.”
So she became a “human book” at a recent event at the school where people could put their experiences on display as others perused.
Alsheikh asked her audience to write their reactions in her journal. They loved it, and one senior asked for a repeat performance.
“I was happy people enjoyed it, which made me want to do it again,” Alsheikh said.
That kind of respect and open-mindedness were just what the event’s organizers were hoping for.
School media specialist Eileen Wholley got the idea from The Human Library, a nonprofit in Denmark, and Jennifer Sidlow, media specialist and student council adviser, helped run the show.
It started when a new student approached Wholley a few years ago about the importance of highlighting diversity.
“We gathered a committee of students to get to work planning the event,” Wholley said. “It was so much fun that we kept it going. Every year the students are such a respectful audience, you can hear a pin drop while the ‘books’ tell their stories.”
Sidlow said the event fit the media center’s goal of creating a supportive and intellectually challenging environment.
“We want the kids and the ‘books’ to feel safe when they present, and we want the audience to be supportive and for people who hear their stories to have an open mind,” Sidlow said.
The event was part of the school’s Global Society Fest in late February, which celebrates the ethnic and cultural diversity of students and included the International Club’s Mardi Gras celebration, as well as a fashion show and dance performance by the Muslim Student Association and Spanish 4 Honors.
Before the presentations, students made a slideshow of their idea and met with book club students to discuss them. The audience was encouraged beforehand to ask responsive and respectful questions.
“Some wrote, I didn’t realize some of these things happened to my students or peers,” Sidlow said.
Elizabeth Stalzer, who teaches math at the school, also enlisted to be a book, discussing her life dealing with Type 1 diabetes.
“This is a big part of my life,” Stalzer said. “When teaching in class, my insulin pipe will beep and some might not know what that is. I was trying to be more inclusive as a person with a disability — representing that you can still live a life with a disability and it doesn’t have to stop you.
“Even though I’m limited, my life is not limitless,” said Stalzer, an avid hiker who has tackled mountain trails.
The Human Library also offered a chance for student Khulud Abukhroub, who lived in Palestine for 12 years, to talk about her Palestinian culture and Muslim religion.
“It’s a lot different culturally,” she said. “You have to speak a different language, and people here are from different ethnicities. I’m so glad I got to learn how important things were at a young age. I learned the importance of prayer and Arabic, which is one of the hardest languages.”