Podcast
Black Mama, White Mama
Hosted by Black Mama, White Mama · EN
Jennifer (black mama) and Monika (white mama) tackle some tough conversations about race and parenting.
9episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
None Of This Is OK
Apr 15, 202100:47:59Tap to summarizeSo much has transpired in the last year, but has anything really changed? We reflect on a year of tragic anniversaries, check in on how schools are discussing (or not) what's happening around us, and are left wondering -- aren't we right back where we began?
Transcribe →Your Search Results Are Racist
Sep 1, 202000:50:06Tap to summarizeThe search engines and apps we use every day are not neutral - they have encoded biases that can reinforce racist stereotypes. In this episode, we talk with Dr. Safiya Umoja Noble, who wrote the book (literally) on search engine bias. We discuss how search engines can perpetuate racism, what we can do to create a more just internet, and why you should never take one of those "Which Disney Princess Are You?" quizzes. Further Reading: Algorithms of Oppression: How Search Engines Reinforce Racism The Age of Surveillance Capitalism Venus in the Dark: Blackness and Beauty in Popular Culture
Transcribe →What Took So Long?
Jun 20, 202000:30:30Tap to summarizeWe try to make sense of why white people are seemingly just "waking" up to racism. And how we move forward from here. What we're reading: When Black People are in Pain, White People Just Join Book Clubs What is an Anti-Racist Reading List For? 10 Steps to Non-Optical Allyship Why White Parents Need to Do More Than Talk to Their Parents About Racism Beyond the Hashtag: How to Take Anti-Racist Action in Your Life 'Unarmed Black Man' Doesn't Mean What You Think it Means What is Owed
Transcribe →What We Got Right... and Wrong
Mar 15, 202000:32:09Tap to summarizeIt's been a year since we launched our first episode. We reflect on our parenting wins, where we've fallen short, and what happens when your school ups the ante on anti-racist discourse. Reading List: Black Lives Matter at School Zora: 100 Best Books by Black Female Authors Poetry Foundation: Celebrating Black History Month Here Wee Read
Transcribe →What Are You?
Aug 16, 201900:44:52Tap to summarizeHave you ever asked this question? Have you ever been asked this question? The multiracial population is the fastest growing demographic in the U.S. Monika and Jennifer talk about our cultural fascination with -- and stereotypes about -- multiracial people. In what ways do we "other" them? Where do they fit in? Fellow mom Kira Onodera joins the show to share her experiences growing up biracial and how that shaped how she's raising her multiracial kids. Jennifer and Monika also ask the question -- how do you pass along a strong and positive racial identity, but not fear, in the age of Trump. Further reading/listening: Study Examines Stereotypes of Biracial Groups in the US Biracial Youth's Political Attitudes and Self-Identification Factors Code Switch: All Mixed Up Multiracial in America
Transcribe →'White Silence is Deadly'
Jun 24, 201900:39:17Tap to summarizeMany white parents have no idea how to talk with their kids about race, so they avoid the topic entirely. But as author and professor Jennifer Harvey, PhD., points out, "White silence is deadly." This week, we speak with Dr. Harvey about her brilliant book Raising White Kids: Bringing Up Children in a Racially Unjust America. We discuss why teaching kids to be colorblind doesn't work, how to desegregate your life, and strategies for raising kids to be allies against racism.
Transcribe →Coded Language
Mar 5, 201900:28:29Tap to summarizeDiversity, tolerance, politically correct... Jennifer and Monika decode some common and seemingly innocuous words and phrases that, in reality, send racist messages. Coded words = What they really mean Diverse/Diversity = People who don't look like me/People of color Political Correctness = Stop talking about your experience Articulate/Well-spoken/Well-behaved = You don't live up to the stereotypes I'm not racist = My intention isn't racist, therefore your experience is invalid Colorblind/"I don't see color" = Your identity doesn't matter Community = Racial minorities/people who are socioeconomically challenged Bad school = Predominantly racial minorities; majority socioeconomically challenged students Bad neighborhood = Predominantly racial minorities; majority socioeconomically challenged students Further reading: What Racial Terms Make You Cringe (New York Times) Coded Language Reinforces Racism in School (The Society Pages) The sneaky language today's politicians use to get away with racism and sexism (Vox) Coded Language: Community, Diversity, and Other Racist Words (Medium) 14 Words That Carry a Coded Meaning for Black People (Buzzfeed)
Transcribe →Befriend Discomfort
Jan 24, 201900:30:23Tap to summarizeWhen Jennifer attempted to talk to her kids about Martin Luther King, Jr., she tripped over her words. How do we talk to children about tough topics in a meaningful way? And how should we discuss historical events without repeating racist narratives? She and Monika "befriend discomfort" to try to figure that out. Books mentioned: We're Different, We're the Same by Bobbi Jane Kates (Random House) Happy in Our Skin by Fran Manushkin (Candlewick) The Colors of Us by Karen Katz (Square Fish)
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Motherhood and Race
Jan 2, 201900:22:06Tap to summarizeWelcome to Black Mama, White Mama. Two friends -- Jennifer (black mama) and Monika (white mama) --talk about how they met, why they decided to make a podcast about race and parenting, and how they're talking to their own kids about race.
Transcribe →