A Word On Racism
It is so unfortunate that even from a young age, minority children have to learn about racism from first hand experience. For parents with kids lucky enough to not have the same exposure, it can be an understandably difficult decision to teach them about racism. On one hand, we are so eager to preserve their innocence and let them continue to believe they live in a perfect world. On the other, it is so important to educate them and ensure that they do not become part of the problem or even just stand idly by.
We encourage you to get comfortable having tough discussions with your children, especially ones pertaining to race. It will help them become more understanding of both the world we live in as well as the experiences of some of their friends. This will also challenge them and teach them real world lessons, like how unfair the world can be. Figuring out how to spark one of these talks can be challenging, so we compiled a list of books that you can read with your kids as a start:
Ages 0-2:
A is for Activist by Innosanto Nagara
Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes by Mem Fox
The Youngest Marcher by Cynthia Levinson
Ages 3-6:
All Are Welcome by Alexandra Penfold
Coretta Scott by Ntozake Shange and Kadir Nelson
Last Stop on Market Street by Matt De La Pena
Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History by Vashti Harrison
Rosa Parks by Lisbeth Kaiser and Marta Antelo
Something Happened in Our Town by Marianne Celano
Ages 7+:
Let It Shine: Stories of Black Women Freedom Fighters by Andrea Davis Pinkney and Stephen Alcorn
Let's Talk About Race by Julius Lester
Malcolm Little: The Boy Who Grew Up to Be Malcolm X by Ilyasah Shabazz and AG Ford
My Hair Is a Garden by Cozbi A. Cabrera
Schomburg: The Man Who Built a Library by Carole Boston Weatherford and Eric Velasquez
Something Happened in Our Town: A Child's Story About Racial Injustice by Marianne Celano, Marietta Collins, Ann Hazzard, and Jennifer Zivoin
The Day You Begin by Jacqueline Woodson and Rafael Lopez
The Other Side by Jacqueline Woodson
Viola Desmond Won't Be Budged! by Jody Nyasha Warner and Richard Rudnicki
We March by Shane W. Evans
