A stack of books with yellow spines, that are titled Thinking Differently

David Flink is a social movement leader on the front lines of the learning rights movement. A graduate of Brown University and founder of Eye to Eye, he was named a CNN Hero in 2021. Here are some of David’s candid insights.

It’s not lost on me, but being a dyslexic author and CEO, particularly the author part, is slightly ironic. And yet we look across the spectrum, and we see people high achieving who have dyslexia. But we also know their chances of attending a four-year college or potentially ending up jobless are impacted when you have dyslexia.

So, to create changes, we have to fight the stigma. That is where I see the heart of our fight. And this is what we are here to do to change the message. I would ask you to think about some examples of stigma against folks with learning differences you’ve experienced or witnessed.

When we think about our public schools, there are 7.1 million schools that receive special education services. Here’s something, though, that is part of the challenge and the opportunity. When you ask parents, 43% would say they wouldn’t want others to know that their child had a learning disability.

We asked a diverse group of students from Eye to Eye, “What percentage of students with learning differences here have experienced harassment, isolation, bullying, mistreatment, or discrimination in the classroom?” I’d ask you to take a wager. And if you think about what’s holding us back as a community, it’s this very fact that 74% said they experienced harassment, and 81% wish that someone stepped in to help. Sharing our stories is one way to do that.

So, I was not always someone who could comfortably talk about my dyslexia. I certainly was not somebody who understood the superpowers that come with dyslexia. And if you were to have come looking for me in high school, you would find a guy who would not dare to talk about his dyslexia.

We have choices about whether we tell our stories. We also have choices about what kind of change we make in the world. We have choices about whether we help others along this journey or serve ourselves. I’ve made it my life’s work to make an effort to share my story and bring everybody along else with us.