Accountable

June 15, 2023
The author of the acclaimed The 57 Bus (2017) delves into another complex story involving teens, personal choices, and societal forces. Liberal Albany, California--where over half the residents are White and most are college educated--was the site in 2017 of a shocking discovery. A Korean American high school junior had created a private Instagram account and for several months shared racist, sexist memes with his 13 followers, all White and Asian boys. The targets were predominantly Black and Black biracial girls (a Black coach and Sri Lankan American boy were also victims). The violent, degrading images were even more horrific since the perpetrator, account followers, and victims knew one another, and some were close friends. Slater's thorough research includes candid interviews with those on both sides. She accessibly explores edgy meme culture, online hate speech, the students' social dynamics, a disastrous mediation session, the school district's actions, subsequent lawsuits, and how individuals were affected post-graduation. Short, punchy chapters offer interestingly varied formats and perspectives. The book will spark deep reflection on degrees of complicity, whether and when to forgive, what contributes to genuine remorse and change, and what parents and educators could have done differently. There's a missed opportunity to unpack questions about identity versus behavior when several young people describe fears of being labeled "racist." The book also would have benefitted from more explicitly addressing Black girlhood and misogynoir. Thorough, thought-provoking, and all too relevant. (author's note, content warning, resources, additional data, note on sourcing, endnotes) (Nonfiction. 13-adult)

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July 3, 2023
Slater (The 57 Bus) chronicles the fallout of a high schooler’s bigoted Instagram account in this emotionally raw work, divided into 15 parts. In 2017, racist and misogynist meme posts from an Instagram account run by a Korean American high school junior leaked onto other social media platforms. This was just the beginning of the account’s reach, which started with a following of 13 primarily white and Asian students in Albany, Calif., and soon consumed the rest of the town. Conversational prose paired with forthright interviews from the individuals who experienced the event document court cases, mediation attempts, and student protests against the account and its owner, as well as how the incident affected followers of the account, classmates in the periphery, and students who were directly impacted post-graduation. In addition to these eye-opening testimonials, Slater explores meme and internet culture, and its effect on teenagers’ mental health and self-perception. Raising essential questions about accountability and complicity, this pertinent read encourages personal reflection and presents a balanced, nonconfrontational look into a situation that, as one student affirms, had gone “a little too far.” Includes an author’s note, statistics, sources, and a bibliography. Ages 12–up.

Starred review from July 1, 2023
Grades 9-12 *Starred Review* In 2017, an Albany, California, high-school junior started a private Instagram account. He wanted content that would make his friends laugh, so he copied ideas from popular accounts and went with what he considered edgy humor, including graphic, misogynistic, and racist memes. Inexplicably, he included photos of people he knew--friends and classmates, including several Black girls. He didn't give it all that much thought until his supposedly private account blew up, rocking his small community. This meticulous retelling from Slater, author of the best-selling, Stonewall-winning The 57 Bus (2017), documents the ensuing events: shock, outrage, accusations, protests, threats, firings, lawsuits, and the aftermath. Using multiple resources ranging from personal interviews to school board meeting minutes to media reports, she creates insightful profiles of principal players; weaves in community demographics, school-district regulations, and technical legalities; and offers additional content such as poems, statistics, and accessible essays on social behavior and emotional trauma. The most compelling parts are those in which she allows the young women victims to speak, sharing their anguish, betrayal, and outrage. This is a compelling and contemporary cautionary tale that should be required reading for any teen before they create, comment, or even like a media post.

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Starred review from September 1, 2023

Gr 9 Up-Journalist and author Slater once again achieves another level of introspection about society through the lens of teen behavior. While The 57 Bus dealt with hate crimes and the juvenile justice system, her newest nonfiction deals with social media and school districts. In 2017, a racist social media account was outed in a small school district in Albany, CA. Followed by a handful of students, it targeted Black girls in the school and posted race-based memes for what was described as "edgy humor." What followed was a multi-year interrogation of prejudice, teen behavior, school response, and punishment that ended with adjudication in the courts. Wanting to tell a balanced story, Slater sought to interview as many involved families as possible and while not all of them sat for interviews, the book includes court documents, statistics, testimony, and more, which are included in the back matter. The book is an honest accounting of the event couched in a societal reckoning of free speech versus hate speech. Its length accounts for a full chronology with one flaw in its approach: sectioned into 15 parts with prose chapters titled, rather than numbered, and several unexpected poems, it creates unnecessary breaks in the intense narrative. The shocking reality that Albany could be any town is what sustains the rabid interest in seeing how the story plays out since it touches on many aspects of contemporary culture. VERDICT This is a well-timed page-turner due to Slater's investigative reporting and must be read, shared, and discussed. Make this a priority purchase.-Alicia Abdul

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