by guest blogger Janet Alperstein, Ph.D I have heard that my son and I are an “alternative family” too many times. It was said by people who meant well, but it hurt. While my son didn’t overhear many of these…
by guest blogger Richard Milner, Ph.D As an African-American, middle-class professor of urban education, I am constantly bridging my research with my parenting responsibilities, reflecting on discourse and actions I take with my children as I attempt to help them…
by guest blogger Rev. Emily Joye Reynolds Last night at a vigil I heard a Black elder in my community trace herstory through the bombing of a church that claimed the lives of 4 young Black girls, the murder of…
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…
Celebrations are a big part of our family: the Jewish holidays, the anniversaries of the day we met and the day we became a family, Guatemalan Independence Day, and National Adoption Day. Each of these celebrations helps us reaffirm our multiple identities.
by Sachi Feris When my daughter was an infant, a fellow new mom once joked that my daughter and her son (also an infant) were on their first “date.” “If they’re both straight,” I countered, and she laughed. With race,…
by guest blogger Janet Alperstein, Ph.D From the day I met my son at age six months, our adoption story and our racial and religious identities have been part of our everyday conversations. The discussions have evolved over time as…
by Sachi Feris The first time my daughter verbally communicated in public about another person’s physical appearance, we were on an Amtrak train back from visiting friends in Boston. She had just turned two. The ticket collector had an olive…
The following topics will be addressed in Raising Race Conscious Children. Click below for blog posts on a particular topic (and check back for additional topics): Race Gender White Privilege
by Sachi Feris On a recent trip to the library, I pulled a book from the Spanish section with two children on the cover, both with light-to-medium brown skin. I showed the book to my daughter and she agreed we…
