Black Lives Matter

Authors: Sarwat Siddiqui, Maya Metser, Tessa Vatalaro, Natalie Brito, Moriah Thomason

@Karen Barbour

As a collaborative, it is the mission of the Baby BEES team to work alongside and in partnership with our community. The values that drive our mission forward are now more important than ever, as the community works to combat inequity and injustice, and heals from the trauma of generational and systemic racism in our world. The last couple weeks have been filled with grief, anger, confusion, and mourning. Through all this, we have seen one of the biggest civil rights movements in history sparked by the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and countless other Black lives at the hands of police. As researchers, and as individuals, we stand in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement and are committed to upholding our mission with integrity. In doing so, we hope to inspire actionable change by providing resources to parents and families as they navigate raising children through a socially and racially conscious lens. We hope to continue to lead through collaborative partnerships across systems in order to contribute meaningfully to this global movement while putting to practice our social responsibility within the community.

In standing with the BLM movement, we are committed to ongoing reflection on how systemic racism pervades our field, and together we will continue to educate ourselves, check our own implicit biases, and hold ourselves accountable to enact change. In addition, the team at Baby BEES is made up of interdisciplinary students and educators, who together recognize the significance of our role to share knowledge and make information more accessible. As child development professionals, the mission of our work is to ensure better outcomes for future generations. Engaging parents and caregivers is central to that mission, and as our community continues to combat social injustice, the conversations we have with our children about race are transformative. Research shows that children as young as 3 months old already have learned preferences towards faces of their own race. This, and other studies, suggest that early conversations about race can prevent learned racism.

@The Children's Community School

These conversations can be difficult for parents, especially now with added stress and concerns for mental health and well-being imposed by the COVID-19 global pandemic. We hope that the resources provided below will serve as guidance to parents so they can have open, honest, and racially conscious discourse at home. It may be tempting to avoid these conversations out of fear that children are too young to understand racism and injustice, but it is important that parents actively address these realities to change implicit beliefs that children adopt throughout development. Beyond addressing their curiosities around race, parents, especially nonblack parents, should make a conscious effort to expose their children to diverse voices and experiences of Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC). 

We created a space here for families to educate themselves, engage in open dialogue, and enact real change. Below, we have compiled various mental health resources for BIPOC, and allyship resources for White families. We recognize that providing resources and facilitating these conversations is just the start. While there is lots more work to be done, we hope that these resources can inspire conversations and actions that work towards equity and justice within our personal and professional lives.

Mental Health Resources for BIPOC: Virtual Mental Health and Community Wellness

During this time, it is critical to practice self-care and prioritize one’s well-being. Here are some resources that may help those in communities most vulnerable.

• Black Mental Wellness, Corp: @blackmentalwellness (Online community for POC offering resources for mental health and coping with COVID-19)

• Therapy for Black Girls: @therapyforblackgirls (Online community, podcasts, blogs, and therapy directory)

• National Crisis Hotline for Women of Color -Text 'TRIBE' to 741-741

• Black Men Heal: @blackmenheal (Online community offering pro-bono mental health services for black men by providers of color)

• Healhaus: @healhaus (Free live streamed classes and meditations offered on Instagram Live, $10 community workshops online)

• Sista Afya: @sistaafya (Online community offering mental health services and resources for women of color)

• Inclusive Therapists: @inclusivetherapists (Reduced fee teletherapy and online therapist directory)

• Other mental health resources supporting Black people

Talking to Children about Racial Injustice 

The resources below can serve as guidelines towards starting conversations about race and injustice in your households and may answer some outstanding questions that you or your children may have.

• UPenn: Talking to Children after racial incidents

• TalkToKids: Talking to children about social issues

• The conscious kid: resources for books in history

• The conscious kid: Instagram

• 5 reasons we need to talk to kids about race

• Everyday Feminism: How to raise racially conscious kids

• Talking about police brutality and protests with children

• Information on child development and social justice

• NPR - Talking Race with Young Children

• Anti-Racism for Kids 101: Starting to Talk About Race

• Talking about the Wealth Gap

• To read more about talking to children about race, click here

Kid Friendly Books on Black History and Racial Justice

@Kadir Nelson

Here are nonfiction and fiction resources to educate children on race and injustice. These may help start the conversation with your kids if you’re unsure where to begin.

• A no-nonsense book explaining racism and how to recognize it: A kids’ book about racism 

• A story about what makes each of us special: Let’s talk about race

• A book that teaches the value of consent: Don’t touch my hair

• A story to excite kids about school through the eyes of a black protagonist: The king of kindergarten.

• A bilingual picture book celebrating all skin colors: All the colors we are 

• 40 inspirational stories of powerful Black women in history: Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History 

• A song in picture book form empowering young Black boys: He’s got the whole world in his hands 

• A poetry book that celebrates Black children: Hey Black Child 

• The history of Malcolm X: Malcolm Little

• A rhythmic book on self esteem and confidence: Crown: An Ode to the Fresh Cut 

• A mystery story about racial injustice: Something Happened in Our Town 

• A story celebrating and exploring the joys of black childhood: Little Man, Little Man

• Introducing young readers and grown ups to anti-racism: Antiracist Baby

Other resources for allies and White parents 

@Joey Oteng

Here are nonfiction and fiction resources to educate children on race and injustice. These may help start the conversation with your kids if you’re unsure where to begin.

Books:

• Coretta Scott King Book Award Winners: books for children and young adults

• 31 Children's books to support conversations on race, racism and resistance

Podcasts:

• Parenting Forward podcast episode ‘Five Pandemic Parenting Lessons with Cindy Wang Brandt’

• Fare of the Free Child podcast

• Integrated Schools podcast episode “Raising White Kids with Jennifer Harvey”

Articles:

• PBS’s Teaching Your Child About Black History Month

• Your Kids Aren't Too Young to Talk About Race: Resource Roundup from Pretty Good

The Conscious Kid

• Follow them on Instagram and consider signing up for their Patreon

Action you can take

The Black Lives Matter movement needs your help right now! Below are various ways for both BIPOC and White people to get involved and support Black communities. 

Black Lives Matter: Ways to Help 

Justice in June

@Haley Weaver

During this time of crisis, our world is experiencing a “pandemic within a pandemic,” and we as individuals have been forced to sit with the uncomfortable and intolerable realities that have plagued BIPOC for centuries. As we mobilize our communities around social justice, it is important to use our privileged platforms within academia to amplify the voices of underrepresented communities and support the Black Lives Matter movement. The Baby BEES team strives to combat systemic racism in research and we hold ourselves accountable in proceeding with equity and justice in our future studies. We are here to serve as a resource for all of the people in our community, and empower the individuals and families that we are engaged with.