A Better World for our Children

With all the current events and erupting movements everywhere, we cannot turn a blind eye to the social issues that we are facing today. One of them is Racism.

It might be difficult for some to have this conversation with our kids. But mama, it is our responsibility to let our children know. And that means having the courage to talk to them about the reality of the world— even if it makes us uncomfortable. 

After all, as Rising Moms, we dream of a better world for our kids, and for everyone! We want our children to grow in an accepting, inclusive, and just society.

Yet, many still struggle with believing the stories of oppression. And that makes it more difficult for the oppressed races. If we step out of the bubble that our reality is the only truth/reality in our world, it would be the very start of the dismantling of oppressive systems! (See also: how we can protect our children from sex trafficking.)

How do I start? What if I don’t give it justice?

Hey, you don’t have to feel pressured to get it right overnight. Because we continuously teach them as they grow. Or better, we learn along with our kids. Having the intention to contribute to the betterment of society is already a good start. (Check out teaching our children about body consent.)

Attorney Mijha’s advice is to talk to our kids on the level of where they are and to be race positive in teaching them. For example, we can simply expose them to books or places with different races while they are still young. We can show them faces of people that look different from them and say, “isn’t she pretty? Look at her skin, isn’t it gorgeous?” or something similar. The key is to humanize other races so our children won’t see them as “different.”

Join us in this important conversation to learn more tips on how we can raise our children to be more aware, loving, and accepting of others!

Other life-changing lessons in this episode…

• Why we start in infancy
• Integrating children to a diverse environment
• How to explain difficult concepts
• Teaching how we can use privilege to help
• Learning from our children
• Where to find kid-friendly resources about the topic

“The more we open our eyes to the systems and structures that perpetuate racism, the better chance we have of dismantling it.” –Mijha Godfrey

We can hope that our children’s generation will see massive changes in the future from where we are now. Just as we are currently living in an era different from our parents (who had segregation normalized during their time.) And helping our children create their future society starts at home!

Meet Mijha

Mijha Godfrey is a former affordable housing developer, lawyer and founder of Jambo Books. Jambo, which means both “hello” and “welcome” in Swahili, is a book subscription service for children aged 0 – 13 where all the books feature lead characters who are children of color. The stories in Jambo Books focus on the beauty of childhood, the joys of friendship and family, the thrill of new adventures, the wonderful tapestry that is the life of a child of color.

Mijha lives in Atlanta, GA with her husband and three children.

Website: jambobooks.com

Facebook: @jambobooks

Instagram: @jambobooks

Twitter: @jambobooks

Youtube: Mijha Godfrey

LinkedIn: Mijha Butcher Godfrey

Pinterest: @jambobookclub