Race and Identity in Foster Care

One can never truly step into an-others' shoes to learn other perspectives of race and ethnicity. Cultural concepts are too different from birth within your family and the community to even come close to identifying with an-others experiences. I have been to three "race and diversity" seminars in the past year, and they all resulted in vastly different experiences.

The first was mostly middle age white women talking about how we can be more inclusive. Although intentions were great, this type of petition has a very limited scope since only one perspective is understood- and there isn't a clear way to bridge the gaps of understanding. We can talk about race and diversity extensively as a group, but only one side is being voiced.

The second was more interesting. The attendees were still mostly white women, but there were high school students, and a panel of people willing to share their experiences of adversity in the community. The panel was made up of immigrants from around the globe that all created a community in Hopkins. Each had a unique perspective of how the community responds to diversity, and how their own family fit within the local culture. There was time to speak in small groups- with 'table leaders' that were a diverse range of high school students. This experience was a good snapshot into what it is like for other people living in Hopkins but I still wanted to know more, I could have listened to the Panels' stories for a few more hours, at least. Im sure there is a podcast for that somewhere.

The third and final class was Race and Identity, instructed by Robert O'Connor. This was the experience I had been looking for all along. Not only did Professor O'Connor grow up in the foster care center as a young black man, he became an expert in trans-racial adoption, social work, and is currently a Professor teaching in these subjects. Every psychological concept was accompanied by a personal story- which gave everyone at the training exactly what we need- an opportunity to just sit and listen to someone experiences.

Give your foster kids positive influences of their own culture before the world has a chance to tell them who they are, and who they should be.

As foster parents, we need to be mindful of our own culture, and the culture our children come from. Intentionally going out of the way to immerse them in what they know is extremely helpful in concreting their identity within the community. Your child craves an influence that looks like, talks like, or is like them.

Help your foster kids find a mastery in something

This can be anything. Running, crafts, sports, poetry, woodcraft- anything that can help them be confident in themselves, and teach them perseverance, diligence, and show them what it feels like to be successful.

This class was beyond helpful, I wish Professor O'Connor had a podcast! Roman and I agree that this class was our favorite so far in the fostering process- two more classes to go!