Talking about Black Lives Matter to White Children

Talking about Black Lives Matter to White Children

by guest blogger Amy Dudley This past Martin Luther King Jr. Day my five-year-old daughter and I attended a day long Freedom Camp organized by some long-time educators, a passionate, intergenerational, multiracial group that included pioneers in anti-bias education, and…

How to help children feel it is “all right” to ask questions about differences

How to help children feel it is “all right” to ask questions about differences

by Sachi Feris When I was little, my parents had friends with a daughter named Emily who had suffered brain damage during childbirth. As a result, Emily could not sit up or talk. I remember, when we visited, feeling uncomfortable…

When race and gender intersect: What I want my daughter to know about beauty

When race and gender intersect: What I want my daughter to know about beauty

by Sachi Feris On a trip to Walgreens, my daughter found some Doc McStuffins stickers—a Disney television series featuring an African-American girl who wants to be a doctor. I had purchased Doc McStuffins playing cards for my daughter a few…

My children’s experiences with internalized racism

My children’s experiences with internalized racism

by guest blogger Ben Wright My children are mixed heritage children—Latina (my partner) and White (me). They have internalized more racism and other oppressions than I would like and it comes out in a variety of ways. My partner and…

Janet Alperstein, Raising Race Conscious Children

“Momma, why aren’t there more boy teachers?”

by guest blogger Janet Alperstein, Ph.D In the fall of 2005, I sat in my parents’ living room where a postcard on a bookshelf read “Raise Boys And Girls The Same”—and told them that my adoption plans were moving forward…

“Charity” is not enough: Why I want my daughter to be an activist

“Charity” is not enough: Why I want my daughter to be an activist

by Sachi Feris As a teacher in various New York City private schools, I always felt uncomfortable about the endless drives for “charity” intended to “help other people.” Rarely, were students helped to see these “others” as real people with…

Black is not a bad word: Why I don’t talk in code with my children

Black is not a bad word: Why I don’t talk in code with my children

by guest blogger Adelaide Lancaster I’m a St. Louis mom, a New York entrepreneur, and mom to three children (ages 4, 3, and 1). I spend much of my time trying to raise these children to be big-hearted, just, and…

What Malala taught my two-year-olds

What Malala taught my two-year-olds

by guest blogger Melissa Le I am a classroom teacher in a pre-school in Brooklyn, NY. I am Vietnamese-American—my parents are from Vietnam. For most of the children in my class, this is their first time in a school environment….

Mother’s Day Action Toolkit for Raising Race Conscious Children

SURJ MOTHER’S DAY ACTION TOOLKIT

Raising Race Conscious Children is honored to have partnered with Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ) to create this Mother’s Day Action Toolkit. Below, you will find book suggestions and talking points/questions you can ask your children as you take action for racial justice on Mother’s Day.

Guest Blogger Julie Roberts-Phung writing for Raising Race Conscious Children

In the face of Baltimore: Reflecting on conversations with my son about Ferguson

My son is 4. He is Vietnamese and White (Irish and Russian), I’m a White woman and his dad is Vietnamese, the first of his family born in the US.

During the weeks after the Ferguson non-indictment, I listened to many stories on the radio about Mike Brown. I thought about each one and whether the radio should stay on or off (when my son was present). I usually turned the radio off when there was a really gruesome description, but otherwise I left it on.