Research-Based Advice On Teaching Children Not To Be Racist

www.theatlantic.com:

Even before that John Derbyshire debacle, it's no secret that talking to your children about race isn't easy.

"Broaching that topic often feels inappropriate, irrelevant, or just plain uncomfortable," says University of Toronto professor Sonia Kang. "Just ask any parent who has had the unnerving experience of witnessing their child publicly point out a stranger's race."

Read the whole story at www.theatlantic.com

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Comments

[Pediego]

05:37 PM on 05/17/2012

Children pick up all adult 'signals' accurately and faithfully. Nothing is hidden. They become what they learned to accept.

[Pediego]

05:33 PM on 05/17/2012

You teach people to be what they become morally (eg Right and Wrong) when children at home; at later times to build on what they accept as children which is difficult to unlearn later. Racism is taught or learned mostly by adults to children.

[llisa]

07:02 PM on 04/15/2012

Also, I was very impressed when talking to my foster grandson when he was in Kindergarten and first grade. He is bi-racial and always described his school friends as "The girl who can draw good" or "the boy who plays Spiderman with me". I never knew their race until I went to his Kindergarten graduation and was introduced to them. I like that race was not what distinguished them from one another to him.

[llisa]

06:59 PM on 04/15/2012

In your first paragraph, you talk about even infants noticing race. I saw that with my adopted granddaughters. The first is mixed race, and as soon as she could reach out to people who were holding her, she would feel their hair, then feel her hair, then feel theirs. She was always very interested in people whose hair felt like hers (as did her grandpa's face when he grew a beard once).

The second is black, and at 3 months old, didn't really seem to care who was holding her. She would glance at them, but was more interested in what the children in the room were doing. But, when held by a black friend of my daughter, her entire attention was focused upon her face no matter what the older kids were doing in the room. She was fascinated by her. She has a mirror adjoining her changing table and loves to stare into it. I don't think it was any accident that she stares longer at this woman than she does anybody besides her mommy and sister. Even her Dad doesn't get that much non-stop attention.

[harriettubman]

03:13 PM on 04/15/2012

And just where do children get their ideas about race? Their parents. There's no talking about it if you're not living it.

[adamben]

01:10 PM on 04/13/2012

yes, isolation is a good breeding ground for racism. that is what i saw as a child but, luckily, we live in a diverse city and neighborhood (and household).

[harriettubman]

02:26 PM on 04/16/2012

Isolation is right and we wonder how someone can live in the US for 40 years and still can't say hello in English! I can't imagine trying to survive like that if I lived in another country.

[adamben]

04:31 PM on 04/16/2012

yes, that is one of my pet peeves as well; not speaking english if you lived year for years.