Is it possible to raise privileged children at the individual level in a way that maps on to ideals of equality at the structural level?
The (fascinating) subject of this book is the formation of racial consciousness among affluent white children — how their beliefs about race and inequality emerge. The core takeaway is probably familiar to many liberals: that the child your school attends teaches them more than just academics. There are benefits to sending your child to a racially and economically diverse school that may outweigh the benefits of a rigorous curriculum. If you’re sending them to an elite private school where they will be surrounded by highly privileged, mostly white kids, recognize that you are also schooling them in the mores of white supremacy, and don’t be surprised if they imbibe the racism that our society is, after all, saturated with.
I was well aware of this idea already, but what is riveting about this book is actually hearing it in action (literally, in my case, because I listened to the audiobook). The way these kids talk about their beliefs, or casually reveal them in conversation, is fascinating, and more than a little disturbing. As per usual, it is parents who claim to be liberal and committed to equality and then say the most glaringly racist things that really set your teeth on edge. I wonder if reading this book and seeing those words reflected back at them would have any impact.
The part that I found especially thought-provoking, in that it spoke most directly to my own experiences (called me out, if you will), was the testimonials from kids attending a school that actively discussed white supremacy and racial inequality — but where the student body was almost entirely white. So there’s this jarring moment when a well-intentioned kid says that they feel like they have a better understanding of race and class difference than the kids at the public school who are actually navigating the effects of it on a day-to-day basis. Of course, to be fair, lived experience isn’t the only form of knowledge, and theory and critical reflection are genuinely valuable! But this kind of abstract knowledge in the complete absence of concrete experience is highly limited, and is dangerous precisely because of the tendency to assume that it is not only adequate, but even superior.
Kasia Reads 