The questions we parents have to answer.
WHAT do you say when your child asks you why some people judge you because of the colour of your skin, or why there are those who simply don’t like the colour of our skin?
As a black mother I tried to answer as best I could but it’s heartbreaking that I should even have to have such a conversation with my nine-year-old daughter.
As your children get older, there are the obvious questions you expect to be asked – how to do their maths homework, the difference between boys and girls, sex(!) etc – but I never really prepared myself for this one.
But with the world as it is and battles still being fought by people of colour on a daily basis, it’s not a surprise she’s more than a little bit aware of such prejudice.
And it truly is a hard question to answer as any ‘reasons’ are so deep-rooted, even the people themselves can hardly give rational excuses for their dislike or hate…
I’ve brought up my daughter to love herself and the skin she’s in – one of the reasons I stopped chemically straightening my hair was to help show her how beautiful her natural locks are.
So luckily I do feel secure that my daughter already knows she’s got that #blackgirlmagic, cause she’s a bit sassy – just like her mama.