Why It’s Important to Talk About Race With Children

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In 2022, even though research on white parents discussing racism was still emerging, my colleagues and I argued that they needed to have these conversations with their children. At the time, we pointed to the subtle things children can absorb racial biases from—the diversity (or lack thereof) of their parents’ social circles, the characters they see on television and the differences they notice between social classes.

But in 2025 subtlety is a thing of the past. In attacking diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, the Trump administration is legitimizing and emboldening racism in ways that children—especially white children—undoubtedly notice. If my son, at three years old, could absorb anti-Black messages when overt racism was more widely condemned, imagine what children today are internalizing in a climate where political leaders openly promote racism.

Read the whole story (subscription may be required): Scientific American