Black Mama, White Mama

So much has transpired in the last year, but has anything really changed? We reflect on a year of tragic anniversaries, check in on how schools are discussing (or not) what's happening around us, and are left wondering -- aren't we right back where we began?

The search engines and apps we use every day are not neutral - they have encoded biases that can reinforce racist stereotypes. In this episode, we talk with Dr. Safiya Umoja Noble, who wrote the book (literally) on search engine bias. We discuss how search engines can perpetuate racism, what we can do to create a more just internet, and why you should never take one of those "Which Disney Princess Are You?" quizzes. 

Further Reading:

Algorithms of Oppression: How Search Engines Reinforce Racism

The Age of Surveillance Capitalism

Venus in the Dark: Blackness and Beauty in Popular Culture

We try to make sense of why white people are seemingly just "waking" up to racism. And how we move forward from here. 

What we're reading:

When Black People are in Pain, White People Just Join Book Clubs

What is an Anti-Racist Reading List For?

10 Steps to Non-Optical Allyship

Why White Parents Need to Do More Than Talk to Their Parents About Racism

Beyond the Hashtag: How to Take Anti-Racist Action in Your Life

'Unarmed Black Man' Doesn't Mean What You Think it Means

What is Owed

It's been a year since we launched our first episode. We reflect on our parenting wins, where we've fallen short, and what happens when your school ups the ante on anti-racist discourse.

Reading List:

Black Lives Matter at School Zora: 100 Best Books by Black Female Authors

Poetry Foundation: Celebrating Black History Month

Here Wee Read

Many white parents have no idea how to talk with their kids about race, so they avoid the topic entirely. But as author and professor Jennifer Harvey, PhD., points out, “White silence is deadly.” This week, we speak with Dr. Harvey about her brilliant book Raising White Kids: Bringing Up Children in a Racially Unjust America. We discuss why teaching kids to be colorblind doesn’t work, how to desegregate your life, and strategies for raising kids to be allies against racism. 

Diversity, tolerance, politically correct... Jennifer and Monika decode some common and seemingly innocuous words and phrases that, in reality, send racist messages.

Coded words = What they really mean

Diverse/Diversity = People who don't look like me/People of color

Political Correctness = Stop talking about your experience

Articulate/Well-spoken/Well-behaved = You don't live up to the stereotypes

I'm not racist = My intention isn't racist, therefore your experience is invalid

Colorblind/"I don't see color" = Your identity doesn't matter

Community = Racial minorities/people who are socioeconomically challenged

Bad school = Predominantly racial minorities; majority socioeconomically challenged students

Bad neighborhood = Predominantly racial minorities; majority socioeconomically challenged students

Further reading:

What Racial Terms Make You Cringe (New York Times)

Coded Language Reinforces Racism in School (The Society Pages)

The sneaky language today's politicians use to get away with racism and sexism (Vox)

Coded Language: Community, Diversity, and Other Racist Words (Medium)

14 Words That Carry a Coded Meaning for Black People (Buzzfeed)

When Jennifer attempted to talk to her kids about Martin Luther King, Jr., she tripped over her words. How do we talk to children about tough topics in a meaningful way? And how should we discuss historical events without repeating racist narratives? She and Monika "befriend discomfort" to try to figure that out.

Books mentioned: We're Different, We're the Same by Bobbi Jane Kates (Random House) Happy in Our Skin by Fran Manushkin (Candlewick) The Colors of Us by Karen Katz (Square Fish)

Welcome to Black Mama, White Mama. Two friends -- Jennifer (black mama) and Monika (white mama) --talk about how they met, why they decided to make a podcast about race and parenting, and how they're talking to their own kids about race.