If you’ve followed Fathercraft for any length of time, you might have noticed that co-founder John has two adopted Black sons.
This doesn’t make us experts. John says that after 8 years as the dad to black kids, he feels like he’s got along way to go on this journey to becoming the best advocate and dad for his sons.
But, not having all the answers isn’t a reason to stay silent, or to not try. And that’s what this blog post is all about.
We’re covering:
- Books for adults
- Resources to help raise anti-racist kids
- Non-profits that are doing important work
- Other resources
- What Fathercraft is doing
Books for adults
Witnessing Whiteness by Shelly Tochluk
White Fragility by Robin DiAngelo [From Fathercraft copywriter Annika – “I just finished White Fragility on Audible and cannot recommend it enough. It puts the pieces together. I have newfound clarity about how we got here and what I can do.”]
Between the World and Me by Ta-nehisi Coates
The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander
How to be an Anti-Racsist by Ibram X Kendi
The Sun Does Shine by Anthony Ray Hinton
Resources for raising anti-racist kids
A list of Coretta Scott King award winning books
31 children’s books to support conversations on race, racism, and resistance
PBS on teaching kids about black history
Resources for talking to children about race and racism
Non-profits doing important anti-racism work
Just a note here: there are so many organizations doing important work, this is by no means an exhaustive list, it’s not ranked in any particular order, but it includes organizations Fathercraft has donated to and and spent time learning about.
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)
American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)
Some additional resources
Resources for accountability and actions for black lives (Google Doc)
Rachel Elizabeth Cargle on Instagram
The Conscious Kid on Instagram
Fare of the Free Child Podcast
How racism causes mental health issues and what to do about it by Sunshine Behavioral health
What’s next for us
We recognize that making donations and writing a blog post (and our original email, printed below) are nothing but a small start in this movement.
We also believe that as content creators with a large and growing audience, we have an opportunity and obligation to further education on these matters.
So, you can expect that we will continue to share content and resources and find other ways to contribute on an ongoing basis.
Finally, we’re continuing this discussion within our company on an ongoing basis. We’re committed to ensuring that anti-racism is an ongoing priority for Fathercraft.
In conclusion
There’s a Native American proverb that’s inscribed in the concrete of the playground where I play with Kenzie and Ruby that says, “We don’t inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children”.
As parents of young children, we have a unique opportunity; not only can we better educate ourselves, figure out how to be an ally, but we also have the opportunity to educate a new generation so that the world of tomorrow is a better, more inclusive place than the one that exists today.
Our email on anti-racism, June 23, 2020
Subject: My Sons are Black
Email:
The recent murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor have ignited a global movement calling for much needed reforms and demanding people recognize that Black lives matter.
Obviously, these events and reactions to these events hit extremely close to home as anyone who has watched any of our videos knows that my two sons are Black.
As a white father to two Black sons I will never be able to fully understand or relate to how difficult it will be for them to grow up and survive in this country as Black men.
As a white man, I have an egregious amount of unearned, and, many times, undeserved advantages that historically have not and potentially will not be afforded to my sons. I can be pulled over for expired license plates and not have to fear for my life. My sons will not have that experience. I can walk around a grocery store without being followed or eyed suspiciously. My sons cannot.
I can write all day about these advantages that are freely given to me but intentionally exclude my children. But it has become plainly evident to me that I have an opportunity or more importantly an obligation to use my privilege to fight for change.
The absolute necessity of a movement like Black Lives Matter is no longer a debate, it’s a fact of life. We can no longer be content with being quietly “non-racist”. We must do everything possible to be vocally “anti-racist”. Our structures are not neutral. Racism is less about individual people and their views and actions and way more about the systems in place that oppress some groups and keep others in power.
It’s very easy for people who benefit from it (me!) to shake our heads and say “how awful” and then do absolutely nothing. No longer.
We hope you join us on our journey in fighting for racial and social reforms and loudly shouting down racism wherever we see it. And we hope you take the time to check out the resources we’ve shared below to be an active ally in the fight.
Here’s what Fathercraft is doing:
- Donating to the organizations listed in our blog post
- Creating content—the blog post below is a start, but not the end
- Continuing the discussion within our company. We’re committed to ensuring that anti-racism is an ongoing priority
We encourage you to consider these actions:
- Listen to the lived experience of POC. Be a good student by reading and learning.
- Financially support organizations that are doing meaningful work related to race
- Diversify your social media feed
- Amplify Black voices.
- Accept that you will mess up. This work is not about our comfort.
We’ve got a new blog post with resources for families covering:
- Some great books for adults
- Resources for white parents to raise anti-racist children
- Books for kids to support conversations on race, racism, and resistance
- Charities we respect that are doing important work
- Some ideas of other ways you can support the movement
[a link to this blog post]
I’m committed to this work as a father.
We’re committed to this work as a company.
We hope you’ll join us.
John, & the whole Fathercraft Team
