Publisher's Weekly Review
Longtime friends Harrison, an attorney, and D'Angelo, Temple University's assistant vice president for administration and planning, present a superb guide for white parents raising Black children. D'Angelo, the white adoptive parent of a biracial son, Gabe, and Harrison, who is Black and childless, share both personal experiences and cultural analysis. For instance, after D'Angelo recounts her son's reluctance to join an otherwise all-white soccer team at age four, Harrison explains his reaction as reflecting how being different in itself can be damaging to self-identity. D'Angelo also discusses how raising Gabe makes her more aware of white privilege--at one point, she becomes angry at her husband for modeling, in front of Gabe, aggressive "behavior that would get our child killed," after which Harrison recalls being warned, as a child, by elders of the danger racially biased policing poses to Black people. More generally, Harrison exhorts parents to educate themselves about how historic discrimination in housing and hiring and under the law continues to affect African Americans, and to make sure kids understand "that when they see Black people in profound disadvantage, it is not because Black people are somehow deficient." This timely examination of discrimination and privilege is packed with insight and should be a great resource for white parents raising children of color. (Nov.)
Kirkus Review
A timely and in-depth parenting guide for White parents of Black children. The authors, longtime friends and colleagues, aim to "orient parents and other community members to the ways race and racism will affect a Black child's life, and despite that, how to raise and nurture healthy and happy children." Harrison is Black, and D'Angelo and her husband are the White adoptive parents of a child whose biological mother is White and whose biological father is Black. The book grew out of the authors' ongoing conversations about race and D'Angelo's efforts to equip her son with the perspectives he needs to thrive. White parents, write the authors, must understand systemic racism, culture, identity, privilege, White supremacy and how their Black children will navigate the world in ways that they do not have to. To "protect, nurture, educate, affirm, encourage and advocate for every child," love isn't enough. Talking about racism can be tough, but the authors present hard truths with aplomb, taking a deep dive into a range of topics, including positive racial identity, foundational research on transracial adoption, how racism impacts Black people's health, racial inequity in education, and the persistent threat of violence against Black people. Ultimately, the authors call on parents and others to make specific commitments to create change within their communities and "dramatically change the social, political, and cultural system." Harrison and D'Angelo write with an urgency and hopefulness that make progress both a mandate and something within reach. Their voices alternate throughout the text in candid and intimate conversations with each other, the reader, and the larger culture. Alongside their personal stories and real-life challenges, they present statistics and contextual history, which makes for a highly informative and compelling narrative. Essential reading for those who parent or nurture Black children or anyone who wants to better understand race in America. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
