Holly Camero
If Mia Giatrelis has her way, the world will someday be more accepting, and she is doing her part to help make that happen.
In 2021, while a junior at Belmont High School, the Tufts University sophomore founded Born Without Bias. The nonprofit’s mission: introduce young children to anti-bias books.
“The main goal is to promote acceptance and inclusion at a young age so that children are instilled with those values and also get to see representation in books,” Giatrelis said.
She says the books she chooses include characters or stories of people from diverse backgrounds and cultures and include themes such as kindness and bullying.
Inspired to Encourage Change
“I feel like the United States is not super unified, and there are not a lot of accepting people in the world. So, I wanted to make a change,” she said.
When she recalled the anti-bias books her parents read to her as a child, she knew just what to do.
“It was instilled in me at a young age to be accepting and kind to all different types of people, to be inclusive. I wanted to do the same for kids in Belmont and all over the world, really. So, I started the nonprofit as a way for kids to be exposed to different themes and different people,” she said.
Most readings take place over Zoom — a practice started during the pandemic and continuing today while she attends Tufts. In-person readings take place in the summer, mostly in her Belmont neighborhood. Eventually, she hopes to read at local schools.
As she reads, Giatrelis tries to get the kids to talk about the story topics.
She recalled a Halloween-themed story that she read to children in her neighborhood about a misshapen pumpkin that no one wanted to pick.
Giatrelis asked how they would feel if they were that pumpkin and what they would do in a similar situation. She said the themes of kindness and acceptance resonated with the children, and by the end of the story, many of them agreed the pumpkin was beautiful just the way it was.
“It was so heartwarming,” she said.
Another neighborhood story time focused on culture and included a book about Chinese culture. Giatrelis invited a parent to read the book in Chinese and English.
She mostly reads to children ages 5 to 8, but anyone is welcome. Readings are free, although donations are accepted. Giatrelis uses the money to purchase books. Someday, she hopes to sell anti-bias books on her website and use the profits to donate books to underprivileged communities.
Looking Ahead
Giatrelis hopes to attend law school after graduating from Tufts but says Born Without Bias is her passion project.
She’s running the organization on her own and would like to increase her library, add readers beyond Massachusetts, and eventually read to children from all over the country and even the world.
She dreams that Born Without Bias will lead to real change.
“One hope … is that kids from a young age are able to appreciate and accept everyone for who they are, celebrate diversity and human differences and be able to be adults in the world that also have the least bias as possible so that the world can be a much more accepting and inclusive place,” Giatrelis said.
She encourages anyone who wants to make a change in the world.
“It’s definitely worth it to put in the work to create change. Although I cannot do it alone, I think every person who is fighting for change and justice, if we come together and keep on working, I think the world can be a much more accepting and inclusive place,” she said.
The next story time will take place at 2 p.m., Feb. 18, via Zoom. To register, visit bornwithoutbias.org.