For Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, I want to expand on the list of resources for talking with kids about racism that I posted last year.
Here are some articles I’ve found thought provoking, from a variety of perspectives.
- Black Girl Dangerous‘ Mia McKenzie offers “4 Things We Should All Teach Kids About Racism Right Now.” She observes, among other things, “anti-black racism isn’t just saying the N-word.”
- The New York Times’ KJ Dell’Antonia discusses “Talking About Racism With White Kids,” sharing links to many other articles, but also the story of conveying to her 13-year-old “the commitment that white people have to make to consider and combat racism, whether it’s overt or not.”
- Lifehacker’s Melanie Pinola gives us “How to Talk About Race with Your Kids,” gathering ideas from various parenting and psychology experts on “When to Talk to Your Kids About Race” and “How to Address Difficult Topics About Race and Encourage Inclusivity.”
- Mater Mea’s Meilan Carter-Gilkey responds to her son’s assertion in “‘I Want my Skin to be White’: How I Taught my Son to Love his Skin.”
- HapaMama’s Grace Hwang Lynch also addresses “When Your Kids Experience Racism,” starting with her own son’s experience. She expands on the topic in a post at The Mother Company, “Why You Need to Talk to your Kids about Race.”
- Teaching Tolerance’s Jonathan Gold, in “Teaching About Stereotypes 2.0,” talks more broadly about stereotypes from his perspective as a teacher—but his advice seems relevant for parents as well.
Speaking as a White parent of a White son, I firmly believe that if we’re not teaching our kids about what racism is and how to combat it, then we’re part of the problem. Whatever your racial identity, please share in the comments your experiences talking about race and racism with your kids. What have you found helpful?
