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For adults, attempting to process America’s grotesque and ongoing relationship with enslavement can be overwhelming — never mind if you’re a child. And, if you’re a white parent, days like Juneteenth might prompt complex conversations that you might not know how to have, but are critical to have nonetheless.
Robert J. Hendricks III, an educator based in Boston and founder of He Is Me, a non-profit geared toward empowering Black men in and toward teaching, told HuffPost that utilizing books as teaching tools for parents can be a great option, especially in moments in which you don’t have sufficient language.
Childhood might actually be the best time to begin the work of holistically looking at the Black experience, especially in world largely observed through a white-only lens, said Bedford Palmer II, a licensed psychologist, associate professor at St. Mary’s College and author of the children’s book “Black Joy: A Healthy Conversation About Race.”
“White children should learn about Black experiences [because] the ignorance of the realities of racism makes white children vulnerable to picking up racist beliefs and behaviors,” Palmer told HuffPost.
Without these critical moments of learning, he explained, white children are left with an inability to understand the systems of oppression that they will be asked to participate in, whether overtly or subconsciously.
“Not a single kid in this world caused racism and engaged in enslaving people. However, it is important for them to understand how they are impacted by those things.”
– Robert J. Hendricks III
Hendricks said that packaging the topic of the white experience versus the Black experience as “right or wrong” is a bad start. Instead, he suggests emphasizing the fact that everyone, no matter their race, is inextricably linked to history, even in the present day.
“Not a single kid in this world caused racism and engaged in enslaving people. However, it is important for them to understand how they are impacted by those things,” Hendricks said. “Having that full picture is, I think, the most important way for a kid to understand truly what we mean when we talk about the Black experience and can help them in understanding their own experience as well.”
If you’re wondering whether historically accurate discussions are appropriate for younger children, Angela Moody, a children’s school teacher with the online online education platform, Outschool, pointed out that “Black children aren’t afforded the privilege of only hearing what’s comfortable and palatable. If they can handle certain topics, so can other children.”
Juneteenth is intended to commemorate Black liberation from enslavement in the United States, but it certainly wasn’t the ending of racism in this country. Hendricks says the children’s books you choose should stray away from being overly white-centered or overly celebratory from the Black perspective.
“Look for books that paint the picture so a child can really see and feel what it’s like in order to become more appreciative of different people. Then they can jump into some of those more direct conversations, or maybe they will even need them less because they just get it,” he said.
The bridge between clumsy discussions and acknowledging an existing system seeped in inequities is difficult to cross, but it’s not impossible.
“If parents normalize these kinds of conversations early, it can actually make them less uncomfortable. It will also create a more understanding and empathetic world,” Moody said.
You can keep scrolling to see some of Moody’s Juneteenth book suggestions for kids as well as some other top picks by Black educators, just in time to commemorate the ending of enslavement in America and the beginning of a greater understanding.
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For Children Ages 4 Through 10
“This can be used for kids between the ages of 4 and 10 or even older. It gives a great introduction to why we celebrate the holiday and some basic ways that it can be celebrated,” Moody said.
Opal Lee was responsible for spearheading the movement into making Juneteenth a nationally recognized holiday, Wilson said. This children’s book, which focuses on themes of determination and persistence, tells of how even when enslaved people became emancipated, they were still anything but free.
“It recounts the experiential history of enslavement through a grandmother’s story of how her ancestors were stolen from good lives and how they survived. It provides readers with vivid images of cruelty of slavery and the hope of rebellion,” Palmer said.
