![]() ![]() What was the racial makeup of your neighborhood? Teams and organizations you were a part of? Your faith community? What about now?.Growing up, did your family ever talk about race? What explicit and implicit messages did you receive about race from your family? Your school? The media? What messages did you receive about police officers?.When did you first realize you were white and that other people weren’t white?.If you have a co-parent, it is useful to discuss these topics together: Before starting a conversation with your children, take the time to reflect on the following questions. However, before talking with kids, it is important to engage in both self-reflection and education.Īll challenging parenting conversations benefit from prior introspection, but self-examination is especially important on this topic since most white people aren’t socialized to think about their “whiteness.” Being white in America means our privilege is often invisible to us, and that we are not forced to grapple with issues of race on a regular basis. Because of current events, these conversations feel pressing and they are. In fact, research shows us that the opposite is true-frank conversations about race reduce childrens’ racial bias (Hughes et al., 2007 Katz, 2003). Some parents feel nervous discussing these topics with their children because they fear that pointing out differences reinforces stereotypes. These types of conversations are new for many white families but are an essential step for creating a more equitable and just future for all children. The tragic deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery have once again highlighted the role that structural racism plays in American society, and many white parents are now feeling a sense of urgency to discuss race and racism with their children.
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