A Mankato school district is offering a class this fall focused on teaching “anti-racist parenting” to the parents of toddlers.
The class, titled “Parenting for Equity,” is available to 3-5-year-olds and their parents, according to a brochure for Mankato’s “Early Childhood Family Education” classes, which are offered through the Mankato Area Public Schools district.
“There is no perfect way to talk to young children about race, racism, equity, anti-racism, and justice,” the brochure reads. It ensures, however, that the class will help parents identify how their own “experiences and biases” impact their “beliefs and values.”
The class is labeled “separating,” meaning children will leave their parents for a portion of the class to be with other children.
Parents will learn how to use children’s books in conversing about race with their toddlers and will investigate the “role parents play in raising race-conscious children.” The class will also “explore how racial identity develops.”
The brochure claims the class will be full of “brave conversations” and encourages parents to join them to learn “strategies for anti-racist parenting.”
On its Facebook page, Mankato ECFE has shared articles titled, “How parents can help their kids make lasting interracial friendships,” “11 tips to help children process the storming of the Capitol building,” and “Talking to kids about the violence at the U.S. Capitol.”
This isn’t the first time the Mankato school district has promoted equity programs. The district paid an equity consulting group $67,000 in June to review its policies and curriculum, according to the Mankato Free Press.
Critical race theory in public schools has been a hot topic in Minnesota over the summer, with parents, students, and community members speaking out against CRT at their local school board meetings.
Rose Williams
Rose Williams is an assistant editor for Alpha News.
