How to Talk to Your Kids About Race
If the past few weeks have brought anything to light, it’s that racial inequality is still very much alive and it is so important to address this seemingly uncomfortable issue in our homes. As a Hispanic American who was raised by immigrants, it is my natural instinct to identify with the minority population with great empathy, but I say this with the understanding that I do not know what it is like to be Black in America. Even in my experience as an Occupational Therapist, caring for people of all ages, I can reflect back on experiences where there were patients demanding a different healthcare practitioner based on race. Specifically because of their black skin. It was a part of my job then, as it is now - to help educate those who do not understand the importance of the Black Lives Matter movement, and racial injustice. There are disparities between all different types of racial groups, and every group has their own fight, but right now we need to focus on this movement, to raise awareness and support for Black Lives.
The inequalities are systemic resulting in mass incarceration, housing discrimination, lack of access to healthcare, high poverty rate, education disparities, and barriers to unemployment. These in turn are some of the reasons for why black and brown Americans are the highest risk for Covid-19 and the devastating effects of Covid-19.
The first step is having a conversation within your household, in our schools and early education. Racial injustice did not start in one day, and it won’t end in one day. But we have the benefit of leveraging social media platforms, increased community involvement, and increased education about racial injustice. It makes me proud to see the way people are teaming up and being supportive and I want us all to keep the foot on the accelerator for change.
Here are some tips and guidelines for teaching the future of our country, aka our children…
NO, it’s not too early for education.
Up until 3 months, children look at all races equally. Starting at 3 months, our children look more at faces that resemble their caregivers. Why is this important? It’s not that there is any ill-natured intention at this age, but we already start to associate race with meaning. In this case, comfort and familiarity. At 2 years old, children start to associate behavior with race.
*Psych Note*
It is a natural instinct for us to want to understand things as quickly as possible. Part of the way we process memory is called Categorization. It’s an important mental act that allows us to not confuse a red billiard ball to a red apple, or an alley cat to a dachshund. They may be similar size and shape, but we are able to differentiate so quickly we might classify it as common sense (Mlodinow, 2012).
On the same note, as humans, we would like to polarize our categories. If we identify one trait as belonging to a category, we associate a strong similarity to that one specific group. Our unconscious turns subtle differences to clear distinctions as a form of cutting out the fluff to see things clearer. Clearer than if we were looking at those fuzzy differences with objective data. Done inappropriately, and we have distorted representations of categories. This is especially true when we look at race, without the understanding and education on race. It is the basis of racial injustice, and the unfortunate root of systemic racism. Our subconscious wants to believe that doctors at one workplace, fans of a specific team, and individuals of a certain race are more similar than in truth.
Ways we can teach our kiddos…
Talk about race, and continue the conversation. As long as you make it an effort to talk about it, it will be a step in the right direction.
Storytelling with toys, get creative!
Model inclusive behavior
Broaden our children's books to talk about races that not only reflect that of their culture, but those of others as well.
Diversify the skin color of your children’s doll collection (if applicable)
Education through media- there is a revolutionary happening for the film and production companies as well, to represent different stories. Take advantage!
Below are some social stories to address race and protesting
Social Stories from Autism Little Learners:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/14YoVmLcOQPbgaWY3eposALmP95GDBrhF/view
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1vRACFpkcGYZZJJLuI351wkJ2RPn0AuzK/view
This is in dedication for racial injustice to the families of George Floyd, Eric Garner, Breonna Taylor, Amaud Arbery, Tony McDade, Botham Jean, Atatiana Jefferson, Stephen Clark, Philando Castille, Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, Tamir Rice, Jonathan Farrel, Renisha Mcbride, Jordan Edwards, Jordan Davis, Aiyana Jones, The Charleston 9, Sean Bell, Oscar Grant, Sandra Bland, Corey Jones, John Crawford, Terrence Crutcher, Clifford Glover, Claude Reese, Randy Evans, Yvonne Smallwood, Amadou Diallo, Walter Scott, Freddie Gray, the list goes on...
Donate:
NationalBailOut.org
MutualAid.org
BlackVisionsmn.org
ReclaimTheBlock.org
MinnesotaFreedomFund.org
GoFundMe.com/f/georgefloyd
https://www.aclum.org/en/publications/data-show-covid-19-hitting-essential-workers-and-people-color-hardest
