Hello readers! Have you decided to partake in our first ever Teen Reading Challenge? If so, have you gotten started yet? Maybe you're looking for a little inspiration. Well, I've got you covered. Every month I'll be posting a list of books, articles, and more than you can read to satisfy each of the prompts. First up — something pertaining to the current state of immigration in the United States. Fiction American Street by Ibi Zoboi  The Radius of Us by Marie Marquardt  Something in Between by Melissa De la Cruz We Are...

January is Human Trafficking Awareness Month and January 11 is Human Trafficking Awareness Day. On the Federal Level The federal government has increased its domestic anti-human trafficking programs. One program is the Department of Homeland Security’s Blue Campaign, an effective plan in raising public awareness about domestic human trafficking, in forming partnerships with non-governmental and private organizations and in bringing domestic traffickers to justice. Through the campaign’s website...

In December 2011, President Barack Obama proclaimed January, National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month. His proclamation read in part: Nearly a century and a half ago, President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation -- a document that reaffirmed the noble goals of equality and freedom for all that lie at the heart of what it means to live in America….Yet, despite our successes, thousands of individuals living in the United States and still more abroad suffer in silence under the intolerable yoke of modern...

    It may be a New Year but these issues are still as prevalent as ever. Kids are never too young to start learning about the world around them. The sooner, the better, honestly. Just like manners such as saying please and thank you, learning to give all humans the same respect regardless of skin color (or gender, orientation, or physical or mental capabilities for that matter; but those are another day's topics) should be something we all learn early in life so that we can grow into kind and caring...