Finally Seen

by Kelly Yang

FReadom “Does anyone know what this means?” she asks, underlining the word Read in FReadom. “Does it have to do with freedom?” Bobby guesses. “It certainly does.” “But, Mrs. Carter, that’s misspelled!” Eleanor says, raising her hand. Mrs. Carter chuckles and tells us with a wink, “Sometimes we can bend spelling rules to make new words. That’s what’s great about this country—it’s constantly a work in progress. You know what that means?” she asks us. We shake our heads. “It means we have the capacity to reflect. And adapt. And that our freedom is only as strong as our people. If we care about our right to read, we have to actively protect it. You’ve seen how easily books can get challenged. But you’ve also seen what happens when you speak up.” Mrs. Carter smiles. “I want to thank every single person who showed up at the school board meeting on Saturday, most of all Lina.”