Paternal #36: Conversations About Race And Fatherhood
This special episode begins with Ryan Harris, who spent nine years as an offensive lineman in the National Football League and won a Super Bowl in 2015 with the Denver Broncos. In this excerpt taken from his May 2018 episode, Harris outlines his experience raising his son and daughter in Denver, and discusses the unspoken lessons passed down through generations of African American men and boys about the risks of dealing with police.
Artist and journalist Graham Parker also weighs in on his life as father to adopted son Artie, who began asking questions about race and identity not long after he learned to speak. In this conversation from his March 2018 episode, Parker outlines how he and his wife have worked tirelessly over the years to communicate openly about race with their son, especially after the family moved from Brooklyn to a predominantly white community in a swing county in eastern Pennsylvania.
And lastly, New Jersey-based DJ Shawn Francis weighs in on the role his stepfather played in giving him “The Talk,” and how he’s processed that lesson over the years. Recorded in December 2017, when Francis was feeling the weight of teaching his kids how to best negotiate the world while being black not long after the election of Donald Trump, his experience as a father resonates louder today than ever.
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