It has been a hard week filled with sadness, anger, and a lot of learning following the sad death of George Floyd. These emotions have been echoed all over the world with protests, petitions and many people campaigning for change for the black community. For many people, including myself, it has been hard to talk about racism and about the Black Lives Matter movement, for fear of saying the wrong thing. We find comfort in saying ‘I am not a racist’, ‘things are different now’ or as a British Asian, ‘I am Asian so I cannot be racist.’
But saying ‘I am not racist’ is simply not enough. We need to work on ways to be anti-racist and speaking up is just the start. It is crucial to acknowledge the generations of discrimination and disenfranchisement that have left black people on an unequal playing field. These cannot be evened overnight and there is a lot work to be done. Educating ourselves about privilege, actively seeking ways to lead lives that are more inclusive and speaking with our children about these sensitive topics are some ways to begin spreading much needed love. As parents we have a big responsibility to educate our children about respecting others, tolerance, inclusiveness and diversity and here are just some ways we can achieve this:
1. Discuss tolerance and diversity – it is important to have open discussions with your children and encourage any questions they may have. It is more important to teach them to learn to accept others for who they are instead of pretending that differences do not exist.
2. Model positive behaviour – Children will often practice what they see and hear as opposed to what they are taught. They are super observant and will catch on to even the subtlest stereotyping and prejudicial behaviours. So practice what you preach as children are more inclined to treat others with respect when they see you practising tolerance and acceptance. It is not always easy to teach young children the concepts of social and moral values. They need to experience these ideas first hand to appreciate their importance in life and this is why creating positive role models is important.
3. Expose children to diversity – provide your children with opportunities to develop friendships with children of other races, religions or cultures. Also, introducing diverse books are a great way to teach children about diversity and embracing other cultures. There are some fantastic books available on the market.
4. Correct children if they make racially or culturally insensitive comments – children can be influenced by a variety of sources and so they may repeat something they hear without understanding the impact. As parents, we have a responsibility to correct them and explain why it is unacceptable.
5. Teach your children about their own culture – help them explore their culture, traditions and identity and ways in which your family is different from others. Then discuss how your culture is different from other cultures and the concept of respecting others even if their culture is different.
6. Encourage your children to make a difference in their community – teach your children from an early age to take appropriate action if they witness something bad in their school or call out a friend if they feel they have made an inappropriate comment. Also try to have an open discussion about addressing issues within your community and country at any given time. By raising a socially aware child, we can promote social acceptance and change.
Together we can make a change. Let’s continue to read, listen, complain, challenge, campaign and educate ourselves and the next generation on figuring out how to utilise any privilege you have to make this a better and equal world. Let’s teach our children to be better, more aware, kinder and more compassionate and to stand against racism, oppression and inequality. I am too, still learning and remain a work in progress. Whilst progress to build a better world for yourself and your children might seem slow, it is permanent.
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