Talking to Children about Race and Racism
Handout from November 10, 2020 PTA Meeting: Printable PDF Version
Antiracism Resources for Adults
Ann Hazzard, PhD, ABPP, Marianne Celano, Ph.D. ABPP & Marietta Collins, Ph.D
Co-authors, Something Happened in Our Town: A Child's Story about Racial Injustice (Magination Press, 2018)
There are many excellent resources available in multiple formats. This list is by no means exhaustive, but a good starting point for adults seeking to inform themselves and their children.
Finding Diverse Books for Children
Anti-Defamation League (ADF) https://www.adl.org/education-and-resources/resources-for-educators-parents-families
African American Literature Book Club https://aalbc.com/books/children.php
Brown Bookshelf https://thebrownbookshelf.com/
Diverse Book Finder https://diversebookfinder.org/books/
Latinx in Kid Lit https://latinosinkidlit.com/
Booklists developed by Hazzard, Collins, Celano https://www.apa.org/pubs/magination/441B228?tab=5
Resources for Adults (with an emphasis on parenting)
American Psychological Association RESilience Initiative. (2019). Racial stress and self-care: Parent tip tool. Retrieved from https://www.apa.org/res/parent-resources/racial-stress-tool-kit.pdf
Caminos Lab. One talk at a time. Retrieved from https://www.caminoslab.org/onetalk
Free online videos and handouts to support conversations among African-American, Asian, and Latinx families.
Center for Documentary Studies at Duke University. (2017). Scene on radio: Seeing white. 14-part podcast available free from Itunes or other streaming sites.
Embrace Race. Retrieved from http://www.embracerace.org/
A series of engaging webinars covering best practices for raising and caring for all kids in the context of race.
Gienapp, R. (2019). Raising antiracist kids: An age by age guide for parents of white children. Retrieved from https:/www.thebarefootmommy.com
Greenberg, J. Citizenship and social justice. Retrieved 2/17/20 from http://citizenshipandsocialjustice.com/
A high school teacher has curated a multi-media, user- friendly 11-step guide to understanding race, racism, and white privilege.
Harvey, J. (2017). Raising white kids: Bringing up children in a racially unjust America. Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press.
PBS has many fantastic resources, often aimed at preschoolers. One recent video features parents discussing racism with young children (https://www.pbs.org/parents/talking-about-racism). Sesame Street consistently celebrates diversity and recently produced the Power of We, a video about racism aimed at preschoolers (https://www.sesameworkshop.org/what-we-do/racial-justice/about-the-power-of-we. PBS shows featuring diverse characters and prosocial messages include Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood, Molly of Denali, Dragon Tails, and the classic Reading Rainbows with LeVar Burton. Shows which celebrate diversity on other networks include Dora the Explorer, Bino & Fino, and Doc McStuffins.
Serial and New York Times. (2020). Nice white parents. Podcast available for download.
Shutack, C. 75 things white people can do for racial justice. Retrieved from https://medium.com/equality-includes-you/what-white-people-can-do-for-racial-justice-f2d18b0e0234
TED. Clint Smith: How to raise a black son in America. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Us70DN2XSfM
Teaching Tolerance. (2018). Classroom resources. http://www.tolerance.org/classroom-resources
This website is designed for teachers, but can also help parents to find materials to broaden their child's perspectives on history and social justice.
