Julius Lester (Jan. 27, 1939 – Jan. 18, 2018) was an author of books for both children and adults. In addition to teaching at the University of Massachusetts Amherst for 32 years, he was a civil rights activist, photographer, and musician who recorded two albums of folk music and original songs. In 1982, Lester — whose maternal great-grandfather was a Jew — converted to Judaism.
Quotes: “Each of us is comprised of stories, stories not only about ourselves but stories about ancestors we never knew and people we’ve never met. We have stories we love to tell and stories we have never told anyone. The extent to which others know us is determined by the stories we choose to share. We extend a deep trust to someone when we say, ‘I’m going to tell you something I’ve never told anyone.’ Sharing stories creates trust because through stories we come to a recognition of how much we have in common.”
Sources: Wikipedia, AZ Quotes
Learn more about Julius Lester on Wikipedia. >>
Watch “The Jewish Americans — Julius Lester” [3:24]. >>
Watch “Storytelling: A Way to Know Ourselves” [44:10]. The video quality is not the best. >>
Watch Let’s Talk About Race by Julius Lester” [7:28]. >>
Photo: The Forward
