The Freedom Writers Diary: Junior Year

by Erin Gruwell
When English teacher Erin Gruwell intercepted a racist note in her Long Beach, California classroom, she designed a curriculum to promote tolerance that she hoped would connect her students to each other, to literary characters, and to the larger world.

Here are links to our lists for the book: Freshman Year, Sophomore Year, Junior Year, Senior Year–Epilogue
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. humility
    a lack of arrogance or false pride
    What impressed me most was her humility. Despite all the accolades she received, she doesn’t think her actions were heroic or even out of the ordinary.
  2. accolade
    a tangible symbol signifying approval or distinction
    Despite all the accolades she received, she doesn’t think her actions were heroic or even out of the ordinary.
  3. plight
    a situation from which extrication is difficult
    When I was born, the doctor must have stamped “National Spokesperson for the Plight of Black People” on my forehead; a stamp visible only to my teachers.
  4. poignant
    keenly distressing to the mind or feelings
    Up until that point it had always been: “So Joyce, how do black people feel about Affirmative Action?” Poignant looks follow.
  5. tactful
    having a sense of what is considerate in dealing with others
    Let’s just say for a teacher she isn’t very tactful. I dealt with all sorts of rude and stereotypical statements, but one day she took it too far.
  6. nonchalant
    marked by casual unconcern or indifference
    I tried to tell her in a nonchalant, offhand sort of way.
  7. offhand
    with little or no preparation or forethought
    I tried to tell her in a nonchalant, offhand sort of way.
  8. bigot
    a prejudiced person who is intolerant of differing opinions
    Oh, by the way, my English teacher’s a bigot.
  9. misgiving
    uneasiness about the fitness of an action
    It’s my personal tale of mystery and misgivings, hatred and heroism, scandal and sacrifice.
  10. nonconformist
    someone who refuses to conform to standards of conduct
    Emerson wrote about being self-reliant. He once wrote, “Who so should be a man, must be a nonconformist.”
  11. intrigue
    cause to be interested or curious
    Our class is really intrigued by Emerson because Ms. Gruwell is encouraging us to be independent thinkers and to question authority.
  12. maul
    injure badly
    “Why didn’t I do anything to help him?” I asked myself. Maybe it was because I was scared of the consequences. Most likely, I would have been mauled by the crowd.
  13. flabbergasted
    as if struck dumb with astonishment and surprise
    I was thrown off, confused, flabbergasted, and to put it simply—shocked.
  14. misogyny
    hatred of women
    We talked about how men can get away with whatever they want, but when a female does the same thing, then she gets degraded and even dissed. Ms. G introduced the word called “misogyny” and everyone in the class was like “What?”
  15. seethe
    be in an agitated emotional state
    By that point, I was seething mad and not caring what I told people about my father.
  16. gruesome
    shockingly repellent; inspiring horror
    Parts of his hair was shaved off and his head was bandaged. The sight was gruesome.
  17. delusional
    suffering from or characterized by erroneous beliefs
    The doctors and medical staff had no idea of his mental status. Was he sane or was he delusional?
  18. collaborative
    accomplished by working jointly
    I just got off the phone with Zlata and I told her that she’s the inspiration for our latest writing project. Using her as our muse, the students will begin compiling the diaries they’ve been keeping into a collaborative book.
  19. permeate
    spread or diffuse through
    Even though they’re not held captive in an attic or dodging bombs in a basement, the violence permeating the streets is just as frightening—and just as real.
  20. mayhem
    violent and needless disturbance
    Room 203 is a place where they can seek refuge from all the mayhem.
  21. obligated
    caused by law or conscience to follow a certain course
    It’s not uncommon for them to stay until seven or eight o’clock at night doing their homework. If it gets too late, I feel obligated to drop them off on my way home.
  22. makeshift
    done or made using whatever is available
    My students always seem to point out the makeshift altars of where the latest casualty went down.
  23. embellish
    add details to
    To ensure that no one embellishes or sensationalizes their stories, I’m going to ask them to sign an honor code.
  24. stipulate
    make an express demand or provision in an agreement
    John and I came up with a contract stipulating that once the computers arrived the 35 students with the highest grade point average would win a computer when they graduated.
  25. pro bono
    done for the public good without compensation
    Realizing that I barely had enough money to pay for school supplies, let alone legal expenses, John suggested soliciting a big law firm because sometimes they do work pro bono. Pro bono is a nifty term for “free.”
  26. capacity
    capability to perform or produce
    However, now that I’m in, I am terrified because I feel that my writing capacity is not at the same level as the other students.
  27. mortician
    one whose business is the management of funerals
    At sixteen, I’ve probably witnessed more dead bodies than a mortician.
  28. catalyst
    something that causes an important event to happen
    It sounds unbelievable to me that one person can be a catalyst for such a change.
  29. integrated
    designated as available to all races or groups
    By choice, the seating arrangement on the bus was integrated: Blacks sat by whites, and vice versa.
  30. adamant
    impervious to pleas, persuasion, requests, or reason
    He’s adamant about changing education, and we’re adamant about revolutionizing it.
  31. camaraderie
    the quality of affording easy familiarity and sociability
    Our camaraderie has more than just two sides, and I feel really fortunate to be a part of this new movement that’s not just black and white.
  32. spontaneous
    said or done without having been planned in advance
    I knew Ms. G was up to something, because she’s always trying to do something spontaneous that has some kind of symbolism in it.
  33. carcass
    the dead body of an animal
    I was shocked when I saw all those dead people, but I was particularly devastated when I looked at all the twin carcasses.
  34. exploited
    taken advantage of
    Quicker than a bolt of lightning, it was as if I was going through the same pain and suffering as those innocent twins who were so exploited and mutilated.
  35. drawl
    a slow speech pattern with prolonged vowels
    He is a rich white Southern man from South Carolina with a Southern drawl, and I’m a young black male trying to make it in life, living check by check.
  36. ricochet
    spring back; spring away from an impact
    A bullet actually ricocheted all through the car.
  37. vigil
    a peaceful, stationary demonstration or protest, especially at night
    Last night we had a candlelight vigil for our family and friends we’ve lost to senseless violence.
  38. skeptical
    marked by or given to doubt
    “Yeah right,” my sister said when I told her I was flying to D.C. Even my stepdad was skeptical. I saved my plane tickets, just so I would have proof that I’d actually gone, to show him when I get home.
  39. rational
    consistent with or based on or using reason
    In any and every situation, nonaction is never a sane and rational approach.
  40. oblivious
    failing to keep in mind
    After a while I would give myself curfews so that people wouldn’t know my mother was oblivious.
Created on Thu Oct 08 19:55:42 EDT 2015 (updated Thu Jun 29 12:19:21 EDT 2023)

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