How to Raise Children Free of Prejudice
In a society where interactions with people of various races, ethnic backgrounds and cultures are expanding, raising your children in a prejudice-free environment can affect their behavior and actions as they grow older. Children are observant beings who learn and adapt to their surroundings, primarily their parental figures. The indirect messages and actions you pass onto your children can affect the way they understand the world and the different people living in it.
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Instructions
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Change your own mindset. According to the Learning Community website, family members and parents are the most influential people when it comes to prejudices. For example, rolling up your car window or locking car doors when you see a person of different color or ethnicity pass by can create a non-direct message to your child that these people are not safe. Children are highly observant and they will inherit small actions you do as a parent.
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Encourage a diverse lifestyle by allowing your children to play with kids of other races, ethnicities and cultures. Racial segregation can cause imaginary boundaries in a neighborhood and community and lead to prejudice. From playing with classmates and family friends of different backgrounds to watching culturally and racially diverse television shows, you can expose your child to a non-prejudiced way of life.
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Comfort and encourage your child when he or she has been teased with a prejudiced comment. Reassuring your children they are "good kids" and the people calling them bad names are not nice can prevent hatred and prejudices of their own. Ignorance toward other races, religions and cultures begins at a young age and can result in bullying if the child is not assertive. Encourage your child to confront the name-caller and say, "I don't like it when you call me bad names, please stop."
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Create a sense of pride about your culture, ethnicity and race. For families of color or interracial families, developing a positive identity about your own race can free children of prejudices against others. Expose your children to their own heritage and background with books, television shows and toys, while still maintaining a diverse lifestyle with other races.
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