Everyday I am reminded that the world my daughter is growing up in is completely different than the world I grew up in. While there have been so many things that have happened in the world over the past few years that absolutely terrify me for her; there have also been positive changes that fill me with hope for her future. As we reflect on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, I am grateful for some of the positive changes that have occurred and how we can teach our children to celebrate our differences.
I noticed one of those positive changes during a recent trip to target. I was looking for a Barbie for my 7-year-old niece and I ended up spending an hour looking at the large selection of Barbies on every shelf. There were two Aisles filled with dolls of every skin tone, gender, ability, hair texture, and body type. I was amazed at the number of diverse options that children have today, that I never had access to when I was younger. In fact, I remember the Barbie aisle at Toys R Us having one black Barbie in a sea of Barbies with porcelain skin, blonde or brown hair, and bright pink leisure outfits. Now, I was looking at an entire section of Barbies that normalized diversity, celebrated differences, and was representative of the world in which we live.
RELATED READING:: Be the change you want to see in the world, talking to your kids about race
So, instead of buying my niece a Barbie that looked like her, I decided to buy her a Barbie that looked like me. I bought her a black doll with long braids and full hips and gave it to her for Christmas and she loved it. She noticed the all the unique features of the Barbie that were different than her features. Children learn about the world around them through play and giving them the opportunity to experience diversity at an early age will set the foundation for how they respond to people who look, think, worship and speak differently than they do.
Today, you do not have to live in a diverse city or neighborhood in order to expose your children to diversity, you can make the conscious decision to diversify the toys in their toy box, the images they see, and the shows they watch in your home. When diversity is integrated into our children’s everyday life, they start to notice when they do not see it.
Creating an environment where children have the freedom to expand their definition of “normal” is so important to their development. Normalizing diversity and teaching children to notice and celebrate differences is the first step to raising a generation of global citizens.
