In this special issue we shine light on the relationship between multilingualism and literacy and on dominant forces that shape it. Here we present a selection of peer-reviewed papers presented originally at the Multilingualism and Literacy workshop held at the 19th International Congress of Linguists in Geneva, 21–27 July 2013. That workshop explored the impact of multilingualism on the literacy development of both children and adults, seeking to identify how literacy skills or lack of them in one language can affect development of literacy in other language(s). This special issue focuses on two particular factors that strongly affect achievement of literacy in multilingual contexts –educational policies and societal attitudes – and therefore also considers community responses these may generate. We would like to take this opportunity to thank the Multilingualism and Literacy workshop’s International Program Committee for their assistance in helping us to select the abstracts for presentation and thank workshop participants and audience for constructive comments and suggestions. We are also grateful to the editors of International Journal of Multilingualism, Professor Danuta Gabrys-Barker and Professor Eva Vetter, for the opportunity to share these papers with a wider audience. Last but not least, we express our gratitude to the papers’ peer reviewers, whose expertise and assistance have helped make this special issue possible.