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The show about subjects we'd struggle with less if we could talk about them more.

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Talking to White Kids About Race & Racism

Talking to White Kids About Race & Racism

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Many white parents have never learned how to talk about race and racism with their kids. Silence perpetuates racism—but it can be hard to know how to start. This hour-long program is about talking to white kids about race and racism: how white parents, families, and teachers can learn to show up for racial justice in a way that will make a difference for generations to come. The show explores a wide variety of approaches with kids of all ages.

Parents, racial justice experts, and teens all provide perspectives on these necessary and challenging conversations, with a focus on how white parents can actively interrupt the racist messages and stereotypes that children as young as three years old are already starting to pick up. We combine compelling storytelling with practical expert guidance to give you tools to start your own courageous conversations.

                                                        

Tips & Strategies for Talking to White Kids About Race & Racism (PDF)

Discussion Guide (PDF)

Listen to Stories From the Episode


Resources

From Our Guests

  • Jennifer Harvey Full Interview Transcript (PDF)
  • White Ally Toolkit
    David Campt
  • Black Girl in Maine
    Shay Stewart-Bouley
  • Waking Up White, and Finding Myself in the Story of Race
    Debbie Irving
  • Raising White Kids: Bringing Up Children in a Racially Unjust America
    Jennifer Harvey
  • Seeing White—Scene on Radio
    Produced and Hosted by John Biewen, with Chenjerai Kumanyika
  • White Like Me: Reflections on Race From a Privileged Son
    Tim Wise
  • Speak Out
    Hosted by Tim Wise
  • White Kids: Growing Up With Privilege in a Racially Divided America
    Margaret Hagerman

Further Reading & Listening

Books

  • White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism
    Robin DiAngelo
  • So You Want to Talk About Race
    Ijeoma Oluo
  • Between the World and Me
    Ta-Nehisi Coates
  • Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria? and Other Conversations About Race
    Beverly D. Tatum
  • Me And White Supremacy Workbook
    Layla Saad
  • Stamped From the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America
    Ibram X. Kendi
  • The New Jim Crow
    Michelle Alexander
  • Strength of Soul
    Naomi Raquel Enright

General Resources for White People Wanting to Become Anti-Racist Allies

  • What is White Privilege?
    Cory Collins—Teaching Tolerance
  • The Costs of Racism to White People
    Paul Kivel
  • The Cost of Racism to White People and Why They Should Care About Racial Justice
    Diane Goodman—Focusing Initiatives International
  • 100 Ways to Be a White Ally
    Kesiena Bloom—Broadly
  • Anti-Racist Checklist for White People
    Robin DiAngelo (adapted from Dr. John Raible)
  • Silence-Breakers for White People
    Anika Nailah & Robin DiAngelo
  • Research Says There Are Ways to Reduce Racial Bias—Calling People Racist Isn’t One of Them
    German Lopez—Vox

Parenting & Teaching

  • How To Talk to Kids About Race: Books & Resources That Can Help
    Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich—Brightly
  • They Were Raised To Be Colorblind—But Now More White Parents are Talking About Race
    Caitlin Gibson—The Washington Post
  • Talking About Race, Learning About Racism
    Beverly Tatum—Harvard Educational Review
  • 37 Children’s books to aid conversations about Race and Racism
    That Sister
  • Classroom Resources
    Teaching Tolerance

Education & Racism

  • The Utter Inadequacy of America’s Efforts to Desegregate Schools
    Alana Semuels—Atlantic
  • The Data Proves That School Segregation Is Getting Worse
    Alvin Chang—Vox
  • Segregation Now
    Nikole Hannah-Jones—ProPublica
  • Unequal Opportunity: Race and Education
    Linda Darling-Hammond—Brookings Institution
  • Inequality at School
    Kirsten Weir—American Psychological Association

Housing & Racism

  • Racial Residential Segregation and Neighborhood Disparities
    Solomon Greene et al—U.S. Partnership on Mobility from Poverty
  • The Shocking Truth 50 Years After the 1968 Fair Housing Act
    John Wake—Forbes 
  • The Test Used to Expose Housing Discrimination and Its Chicago Roots
    Natalie Moore—WBEZ

Employment & Racism

  • Workplace Discrimination is Illegal. But Our Data Shows It’s Still a Huge Problem.
    Maryam Jameel & Joe Yerardi—Vox
  • The Mark of a Criminal Record
    Devah Pager—American Journal of Sociology

Criminal Justice & Racism

  • Criminal Justice Facts
    The Sentencing Project
  • Tipping Point: Maryland’s Overuse of Incarceration and the Impact on Public Safety
    Eric Lotke & Jason Ziedenberg—Justice Policy Institute
  • Ending Mass Incarceration: Ideas From Today’s Leaders
    Inimai M. Chettiar et al.—Brennan Center
  • Left and Right Agree on Criminal Justice: They Were Both Wrong Before
    Maggie Astor—The New York Times
  • There’s Overwhelming Evidence That the Criminal Justice System is Racist. Here’s the Proof.
    Radley Balko—The Washington Post
  • Report: Who Pays? The True Cost of Incarceration on Families
    Ella Baker Center for Human Rights & Partners

Healthcare & Racism

  • Doctors and Racial Bias: Still a Long Way to Go
    Aaron E. Carroll—The New York Times
  • Implicit Bias in Healthcare Professionals: a Systematic Review
    Chloe FitzGerald and Samia Hurst—BMC Medical Ethics
  • Reducing Racial Disparities in Healthcare By Confronting Racism
    Martha Hostetter and Sarah Klein—The Commonwealth Fund

Helpful Organizations

  • Teaching Tolerance
  • Equal Justice Initiative
  • The Conscious Kid
  • Embrace Race
  • ERASE Racism
  • Cultures of Dignity
  • HERE To HERE
  • DreamYard
  • Showing Up for Racial Justice
  • Community Change Inc.
  • Justice Mapping Project
  • White Privilege Conference
  • Center for Racial Justice in Education

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Generously supported by:

  • The Annie E. Casey Foundation
  • The Lucy R. Sprague Charisma Fund
  • The Equity Fund
  • The Fleming Family Foundation
  • The Hope and Grace Fund
  • Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation
  • The Lerner Foundation
  • The Matthewson Foundation
  • The Pinkerton Foundation
  • The Pink House Foundation
  • The Rines Thompson Fund
  • The Sam L. Cohen Foundation

We Can Talk About it!

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