Yes, we need to talk about this now.
 | By Joanna Pearlstein Staff Editor, Opinion |
There's a moment in every parent's life when we have to explain to our children, as poet Maggie Smith wrote, that "the world is at least fifty percent terrible, and that's a conservative estimate." |
Years ago, as I prepared to screen "The Sound of Music" for a group of children that included my then-7-year-old, I ran through the movie's plot in my mind and realized: Ugh, Nazis. Does he have any idea what that's all about? Do we really have to talk about this now? (Indeed, we did.) |
It's difficult for any parent to reveal the world's terribleness to their children. That issue is particularly evident in the nation's debates about how we teach race and racism in schools. Some argue that frank discussions about prejudice will just make the problem worse. |
But parents can't protect their children from the realities of the world. Nor should they. In her new book "How to Raise Kids Who Aren't Assholes" (surely, a goal of every modern parent), Melinda Wenner Moyer, a science journalist, describes what research shows about how parents should talk to their children about race and racism. |
The topic is often taboo in white families, but of course it can't be avoided for many families of color. As Wenner Moyer writes in a guest essay today, researchers have learned that discussing race with children actually decreases prejudice among white children and increases the self-esteem of children of color. "If states ban the teaching of critical race theory, as conservative lawmakers in many are attempting to do, or if schools don't provide consistent education about racism and discrimination, it's imperative that parents pick up the slack," she writes. |
In other words: Don't ignore the Nazis. Don't pretend race and racism don't exist. Let children know the world is at least half terrible, so they have a chance to fix it. |
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