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I don’t think that it’s any secret that Black children are the ones who have the most trouble getting adopted. So while it’s generally a step in the right direction for these children to get adopted, the work doesn’t end there.
Black children need to be raised differently. And for the most part, White people in are not prepared to do that type of work. Mostly because their privilege affords them the ability to bypass the need for reformation in the first place. And secondly, because work is unpleasant and it would likely cause them to confront some of their own racism, antilock ideologies and more.
But all parents should engage in some level of mental work. So I don’t think it’s too much to ask, specifically for children who have perhaps experienced more trauma than the average child. Because if you don’t do this work, you might find yourself taking an insensitive, inappropriate and low-key racist image with a child you vowed to love and protect.
Take a look at this image below.
No.
Just no.
I can’t understand why they thought this was a good idea. But perhaps they weren’t thinking at all. And while I don’t think their decision to take this picture discounts them as suitable parents, the level of insensitivity and emotional ignorance it represents is concerning. This Black child might come up against all types of racial sensitivity, growing and moving through this country. So it’s a shame to think that she would have to unknowingly confront it in her own home.
It reminded people of this video of another Black child being taken to a cotton field as a form of entertainment.
https://twitter.com/loveandcarbs/status/1048280885605425152
And it reminded me of the time two White young men bought bags of cotton and threw them across the lawn at my University’s Black Culture Center, no doubt to send a message and hoping that someone Black would have to pick it up. Thankfully, the latter didn’t happen and the two White guys were punished.
What do you make of this image? Do you think we’re overreacting or is it really a big deal considering they’ll be shaping this child in innumerable ways?
