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Hello {{ first name | friends}},
When you ask most Black people when they experienced racism, they often cite an incident they can remember between the ages of 5 and 7. That's been researched and documented and until very recently seemed to represent the fact. But a couple of recent news stories have made me think about the racism kids experience when they are not young enough to remember it.
Two Recent Incidents
Let's start with the baby, Kohen Wiley, who was shot and killed because his mother was accused of shoplifting some diapers. Note: the key word here is "accused" because, as it was later proved, she hadn't done it. In the process of the police “dealing with” that incident the baby was shot. This baby was not old enough to have done anything and his life was untimely snuffed out. But in a similar situation, say he had survived, then that would have been his first experience of racism. Given what we know about adoption trauma (for example, affecting babies adopted at birth), it is fair to surmise that children who experience racism even before they're fully talking will still carry some memory of that trauma in their bodies as they get older. (Also: the shooting was "justified"? Really?! smh. It was just plain WRONG!)
