teaching him how to respond when others quickly judge him based on his skin color and how he can respond when he sees injustices in the world. We role play a lot: “If someone calls you a name, what do you do and say?” “If someone says something bad about someone else, how do you help?” The psychologist and mother in me wants him to be as emotionally healthy as possible throughout his life, so I stress how amazing he is (because he is!) and how he can cope with his emotions from different situations he will encounter in life.
racism. I am hopeful to see the education, healthcare and legal systems (just to name a few) begin to have leaps and bounds towards changes for the better. When parents teach children from an early age how to stand up for one another, appreciate diversity, recognize racism and love one another, we can begin to change future generations.
increased irritability, heightened anxiety levels, thoughts or signs of wanting to hurt themselves or someone else or increased aggression. Parents should seek professional help when they have noticed these symptoms are interfering with their child’s social, academic, emotional or mental functioning. Consulting with a mental health professional can answer
How do we move forward as parents to ensure we are raising anti-racist and inclusive children? How do we continue to educate ourselves? Recently with George Floyd’s death, the Black Lives Matter movement and the protests throughout the world, there are many anti-racist resources that are now more visible and shared, like books, podcasts, movies and websites. It is imperative that parents learn about the history of racism and how to help children develop anti-racist attitudes going forward. Children and families should be listening to others as they share their life experiences. Teach children how to appreciate the differences in others and how they can become better individuals by understanding the impact of racism, prejudice and discrimination. If your child is white or white passing, teach them how to be an “ally” to other children who are not in the white majority group. When children hear insensitive racial jokes about others, teach them how to respond and take a stand on what is right.
What is your hope for the future? My strongest hope for the future is for a world with true equality, justice, respect and more love. My hope is that with all the momentum from the recent events of racial injustice, communities begin and continue work to erase systemic
different cultures? Have difficult conversations with your own friends and family about racism? Are you talking about solutions with others? Kids learn by seeing. Self-care is also vital right now for parents. As a parent dealing with raising children during a global pandemic, global protests related to racial injustices and numerous changes over the past couple of months, it is critical to find the time to take care of your mind, body and spirit. You can only bring the best version of you when you are making sure to practice self-care in the way that works for you.
If I have already had the conversation with my child, why is it so important to keep the conversation going and how can we continue to grow and learn as a family? Having “the talk” about racism and social justice is not just a one-time conversation. While the conversation should start the first couple of years of life, this conversation should be often and adjusted with age. Continue to promote the positive values in your family through different means. Let your child know that you are there for them always, even with the difficult topics. Dr. Hammond and family on a trip to Paris.
Our kids have a lot on their plates right now with the coronavirus pandemic ongoing. At what point should a parent seek professional help to help their child deal with the stress and anxiety of current events? Children have indeed been through so much uncertainty, confusion and emotional pain over the past couple of months with the coronavirus pandemic. Parents should seek professional help for their children when they see red f lags for mental health distress: problems with eating and/or sleeping, significant behavioral changes,
many questions for parents, including: “Is this just normal behavior because of the coronavirus or a much more serious concern?”
Is there anything we did not ask that you think is important for parents to know? Parents should continue to have hope to raise anti-racist children and remember that children learn by watching behaviors. Parents should also model who they want their children to be. Look at your own life and the movies you choose, the people you associate with, and the foods you choose to eat, for example. Do you also show children how to experience
Should we be talking more about these issues in the classroom? Yes! Right now, all schools, starting with preschool, should have curriculum in place that specifically addresses racism, racial trauma and social justice. While it is a start to have kindness and empathy as a part of the conversation, we need to teach all children about racism, prejudice and discrimination in a language they understand. For the tweens and teens, we need to continue to have “difficult dialogues” in the classroom, with ground rules put into place (being respectful of others, listening to one another). Ideally, there should be anti-racism education for preschool and K-12 classes.
JULY 2020 TampaBayParenting.com
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