In light of the George Floyd murder and subsequent actions, it’s important to understand the narrative.
I will raise my hands here and say, I am learning, I’m probably going to screw up, I am educating myself and sometimes I won’t get it right. That is how we learn though.
I’m listening and I want to help but I am not the one to lead this discussion.
I am a white woman living as a minority and I have experienced racism. My son, who is of mixed race or ‘hafu’ has been told to “go back home”. He was born here, he is home. We know has shitty it is to be discriminated against.
That said, we have never been in a life-threatening situation due to the colour of our skin nor do I worry about simple things such as what would happen if I walked through a particular neighbourhood here.
That is privilege.
And that is the difference.
I believe that as parents it is our job to have discussions about racism and privilege with our kids but it is is also our job to show them how to stand up for those in a less privileged situation – whatever it may be but specifically for this post, Black Indigenous People of Colour (BIPoC).
This can be uncomfortable and awkward but that makes it more the reason to do so.
I am definitely NOT an expert in this arena, and it’s not really the job of our friends who are BIPoC to explain it all to us. It’s up to us to educate ourselves. That’s what we do with anything else we don’t understand. this should be no different.
I put up a post in my free community Moms That Rock and asked for the moms to share the resources they have come across. Find them listed below, along with a load of great books, as I come across more I will add more to it.
IF you find yourself saying
“But all lives matter” or “But not all white people…”
Then please start by reading this by KatyKatiKate she explains it well and once you take yourself out of the equation it all becomes easier to digest and you’ll come away with a deeper understanding.
How to talk to kids about racism – long post but worth the read, especially if you feel unsure on how to tackle the issue.
Anti-racism Resources – A great list includes books, films, podcast and social media accounts to follow.
Your Kids Aren’t Too Young to Talk About Race – Round up post specifically for talking to kids.
Anti-Racism For Kids 101: Starting To Talk About Race
Anti-Racism for Beginners + White People
The Conscious Kid on Instagram has had several recommendations too.
Feel too busy to do anything? Check this out, they have resources broken down into chunks of time, as little as 10 minutes a day.
Meet the psychologist exploring unconscious bias—and its tragic consequences for society – if you want to know more about the psychology side.
If you run your own business and find it difficult to find inclusive images – I know I have, I have scoured the sites myself. I have updated the 100+ Stock Photos Site post and added all the diversity/BIPOC sites that I can find.
This is a great video for kids (and adults) about systemic racism
Books
I’m a reader, that is my go-to for educating myself, so I have collected the recommended books I have seen and listed them below.
The following includes affiliate links this means that I receive a small commission at no cost to you if you choose to buy.
Books About Racism For Adults
Putting this at the top as it is the one book I have seen recommended over and over again.
Me and White Supremacy: Combat Racism, Change the World, and Become a Good Ancestor
And this one to use as a family
This Book Is Anti-Racist: 20 Lessons on How to Wake Up, Take Action, and Do The Work (good for aged 8+)
The Fire Next Time
Minor Feelings: An Asian American Reckoning
America’s Original Sin
The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness
Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race
Good Talk: A Memoir in Conversations
Blindspot: Hidden Biases of Good People
White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism
I’m Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness
When They Call You a Terrorist: A Black Lives Matter Memoir
An African American and Latinx History of the United States
Citizen: An American Lyric
An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States
Mindful of Race: Transforming Racism from the Inside Out
Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption
Tears We Cannot Stop: A Sermon to White America
The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America’s Great Migration
The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America
Have Black Lives Ever Mattered?
Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America
Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?: And Other Conversations About Race
Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You
Hood Feminism
Books To Talks To Kids About Racism
The age is just a guide, you know your child best, where they are developmentally and what they can handle when it comes to tough topics.
Age 4+
Sulwe
What Is Given from the Heart
The Stuff of Stars
Hidden Figures: The True Story of Four Black Women and the Space Race
Freedom in Congo Square
Age 6+
The Undefeated (Caldecott Medal Book)
Crown: An Ode to the Fresh Cut
Freedom Over Me: Eleven Slaves, Their Lives and Dreams Brought to Life
Radiant Child: The Story of Young Artist Jean-Michel Basquiat
I Have a Dream
Age 8+
New Kid
Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky: Tristan Strong, Book 1
Finding Langston
The Parker Inheritance
The Season of Styx Malone
Age 10+
Look Both Ways: A Tale Told in Ten Blocks
As Brave As You
Bad News for Outlaws: The Remarkable Life of Bass Reeves
Elijah of Buxton
Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans
Age 12+
Genesis Begins Again
The Hate U Give
Long Way Down
March: Book One
How I Discovered Poetry
Age 14+
The Stars and the Blackness Between Them
Monday’s Not Coming
Piecing Me Together
How It Went Down
Darius & Twig
Like I talked about in my last post, as parents it is important that we raise global citizens. This hatred and evilness will just continue if we don’t make an effort to quash it.
I will leave you with a quote from Maria Montessori…
