This chapter emphasizes the importance of teaching children to be comfortable talking about race from a young age in order to create a future with productive dialogue and discussions across differences. It explores steps for challenging conversations about race, addresses the fear and challenges educators face, and encourages preparation and pushing through fear.
Learning how to have productive conversations about race is a necessary part of the human experience. We’re revisiting a talk by educator Afrika Afeni Mills, who says the best place to start is in the classroom -- because the earlier these skills are taught, the fewer biases there are to unlearn. She shares four actionable lessons to help people overcome their fear and take on these conversations at any age. After the talk, Modupe shares questions to ask ourselves to have more open conversations at work.