My 13-year-old son, Yosef, is black. I’m white. Most times, we’re too busy to take notice of the difference. Never, though, have I felt a pastier shade of white than when I talk to my son about the anecdotes of racial divide that dot the national headlines on what recently seems to be a daily basis. When President Trump calls U.S. Rep. Elijah Cummings out in the context of Baltimore crime statistics and subpar housing conditions, Yosef looks to me to make sense of people calling our commander in chief a racist, asking in confusion, “They’re saying the President is racist. What?” After … [Read more...]
Bipartisan Parenting: Turning Presidential Racism into Teachable Moment
On the same day President Trump reportedly said “s---hole” countries in Africa were inferior sources for future American immigrants, my 12th-grade daughter was starting to read Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness in English class. The juxtaposition was too much.Conrad’s British novel indicts the racism of European imperialism in Africa in the late 1800s, specifically during the ivory trade. Ironically, however, many readers consider the novel a racist text because of the way it backgrounds Africa, stereotypes the “primitive” natives, and treats the whole continent as a blank slate for the white … [Read more...]
Raising Race Aware, Respectful Kids By Noticing ‘What’s the Difference’
We continue the national discussion on race and raising children by having Los Angeles Dads Group member Doyin Richards, author of the new children's book What’s the Difference?: Being Different is Amazing., joins us on the Modern Dads Podcast What's the Difference? is aimed at children ages 2 to 10, and covers diversity and acceptance. It introduces children to race relations by teaching them not to be colorblind, but rather "race aware." It encourages them to recognize and embrace the differences of the people they encounter in life. Richards, a father of two who became … [Read more...]
‘Real American’ Author on Life Obstacles for Biracial, Black Children
Race and racism are rarely easy topics for parents to address with their children, Julie Lythcott-Haims hopes she can help by sharing her experience as a biracial black girl, woman, daughter and mother raising two biracial children in modern America. Lythcott-Haims, who first came to the attention of the parenting world with her 2015 New York Times bestselling anti-helicopter parenting book How to Raise an Adult, appears on the latest edition of The Modern Dad Podcast to discuss her latest book, the well-received memoir, Real American. She talks the steps all of us can take to support … [Read more...]
On the Ground My Enslaved Ancestors Worked
Editor's Note: Indianapolis Dads Group co-organizer Creed Anthony spoke at the recent Dad 2.0 Summit as a featured "Blogger Spotlight" reader. He read this piece about visiting the land worked by his slave ancestors to the audience of 500 in Washington, D.C.
My great-great-great grandfather was a slave in Maysville, Kentucky. He eventually escaped slavery and made his way to Canada (most likely because of the Fugitive Slave Act) and then returned to Ohio to enlist in the Union Army – as a free man. This past weekend I stood, as a free man and proud … [Read more...]