Originally Posted by
twowhat?
YES THIS.
It is not enough to "model" the absence of racist behavior. It is not enough.
You have to have the uncomfortable conversation with your kids, and you have to do it early and often. When my kids come home and say some guy driving by yelled a cuss word at their classmate while walking to school, we immediately had a conversation about why that classmate was targeted. Was he black? Yes. Was the man calling himself a "f-ing black kid" white? Yes. Is this wrong? Hell yes.
"Teaching" kids to be colorblind is the wrong approach. We must teach kids to SEE color and to SEE that it impacts how some people are treated. We talk openly and freely about whether a friend is Black, or Indian, or Asian, or White, and we use those words. We talk about the challenges they may be facing due to skin color. We talk about what is racist behavior. We talk about gathering the courage to say something if they witness racist behavior. We even talk about how black dogs are less likely to be adopted, as an example of how human behavior is influenced by generalizations.
Teach your kids to see the color.