English instructors must discover methods that inspire culturally diverse university students to utilize intelligent reading strategies, even when students feel like inferior outcasts. A class was designed at the University of Alaska to teach reading strategies. The typical class consisted of 20-25 students ranging in age from 18 to 60 and representing a broad cultural and ethnic spectrum. The initial assignment is the composition of a reading autobiography in which the students describe their experiences with reading in the past. Examples of the thoughts and emotions from student writing and journals demonstrate a changing attitude toward reading over the course of time. Racism, which is common to many ethnic groups, may be evoked in the student writings by certain kinds of reading assignments. It remains common to encounter students who profess to hate reading, especially when they have felt marginalized or have been humiliated by teachers. This makes the fostering of a "safe" classroom environment of paramount importance. Students must be assured that the instructor has faith in each individual. Many students, as experience has shown, only need minimal encouragement to become avid readers. These techniques are not just relevant to a culturally diverse region like Alaska. The medium of literature provides a useful site for the alleviation of some of the general bigotry, violence and pain common to all facets of society. (HB)