Who wrote 'Our Skin'? 'Inflammatory' kids' book in NYC schools BLAMES racism on White people
A children's book distributed to New York City schools allegedly teaches kids that White people are to be blamed for racism. The book teaches children as young as two that the concept of race was created by white people who claimed they were “better, smarter, prettier, and that they deserve more than everybody else.”
The book, titled 'Our Skin', has been written by Harlem activist Megan Madison and Brooklynite and library worker Jessica Ralli. Besides blaming White people for racism, the book has illustrations of scary-looking human skulls kept on shelves. "A long time ago, way before you were born, a group of white people made up an idea called race. They sorted people by skin color and said that white people were better, smarter, prettier, and that they deserve more than everybody else,” the book says. It continues to declare that “That isn’t true or fair at all!”, with a picture of a “Caucasian” man holding up the “Most beautiful skull.”
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The book adds that “racism is also the things people do and the unfair rules they make about race so that white people get more power.” It does not discuss that groups other than Whites might be racist.
What does the book say?
The book, which appears to be part of the Department of Education’s new 'Universal Mosaic Curriculum', has been distributed to at least one Manhattan kindergarten, one on Staten Island, and one school in Brooklyn. It is meant for children as young as two to five years of age.
'Our Skin' book can be found on a suggested reading list that can be accessed by parents with the website TeachingBooks. It is part of the “Universal Mosaic Independent Reading Collections” for kindergartners created by the DOE’s Library Services. According to Brooklyn parent leader Vito LaBella, the text is “inflammatory". “That page alone in my mind is just preaching hate,” he said.
On the TeachingBooks website, it is written of the book, "Based on the research that race, gender, consent, and body positivity should be discussed with toddlers on up, this read-aloud board book series offers adults the opportunity to begin important conversations with young children in an informed, safe, and supported way. Developed by experts in the fields of early childhood and activism against injustice, this topic-driven board book offers clear, concrete language and beautiful imagery that young children can grasp and adults can leverage for further discussion."
"While young children are avid observers and questioners of their world, adults often shut down or postpone conversations on complicated topics because it's hard to know where to begin. Research shows that talking about issues like race and gender from the age of two not only helps children understand what they see, but also increases self-awareness, self-esteem, and allows them to recognize and confront things that are unfair, like discrimination and prejudice," it adds. "This first book in the series begins the conversation on race, with a supportive approach that considers both the child and the adult. Stunning art accompanies the simple and interactive text, and the backmatter offers additional resources and ideas for extending this discussion." The book is also available online on Amazon.com.
The authors
According to Amazon.com, Megan Madison is an early childhood educator, scholar, and activist based in NYC. She started her career as an assistant in a Waldorf elementary school. "After completing her undergraduate degree at the University of Michigan, Megan then went on to become a teacher in a Head Start preschool classroom. Now, as a doctoral candidate at Brandeis University, she works part-time facilitating workshops for teachers and families on race, gender and sexuality. Megan is currently working on a board book series with co-author Jessica Ralli for Rise x Penguin Workshop on race, gender, consent and body positivity," the website says.
Jessica Ralli is an educator and writer, Amazon.com says. At present, she is the Coordinator of early literacy programs at Brooklyn Public Library, and develops and manages creative initiatives for children 0-5. "She received her M.A. in Early Childhood Special Education from Teachers College, Columbia University, specializing in play-based, emergent and integrated curriculum development for infants and toddlers," the website says. "She has written about early literacy for School Library Journal, Library Trends, and the BKLYN Kids Blog. Jessica has presented on early literacy and play-based learning at the American Library Association Conference, Young Child Expo, Bank Street Center for Children’s Literature, Urban Librarians Conference and at other professional forums."
'Racism should be talked about correctly'
A Manhattan parent of a kindergartener noticed that the book was in his son's school in a box marked 'Mosaic curriculum'. “The book itself is fine and a lot of what is said in the book is productive and I think very helpful in a discussion of race,” New York Post quoted the dad as saying. “However, there’s just an excerpt from it that I think is so damaging that it should disqualify the whole book.” He said that he would speak to the principal about his concerns.
“Racism should be talked about, but it should be talked about correctly,” he said. “I think that telling 5- and 6-year-olds that white people are all responsible for all racism is not helpful. It’s going to be very traumatic for many 5- and 6-year-olds who are going to blame themselves and blame their parents.”
Chien Kwok, a parent leader and member of the Community Education Council in Manhattan’s District 2, said that he came across the book on the TeachingBooks site. “The DOE should be sensitive to the fact that not every family will agree with what’s age appropriate,” Kwok said. “They need to be transparent and have a way of opting out and providing alternatives that families are comfortable with – especially in the younger ages.”
Asian-American mom from Queens reportedly questioned whether the book is for “a black or white audience — or for all children?” “When you see these anti-racism books they almost always leave out Asians. It’s always spoken about in a white vs. black narrative – which is not what the city is – it’s a city of immigrants,” she said.
Author Ralli, 42, is the coordinator of early literacy programs at Brooklyn library system. The library has reportedly 56 copies of the book in its collection. The DOE explained that while the book is “not part of our prescribed curriculum”, schools can buy books on their own. The department refused to confirm whether the book was now being evaluated.
“Our public schools do not shy away from books that teach our students history and can be used to deepen their understanding of the world around them. We value and honor our students’ perspectives and identities, and we provide opportunities for family voices to be heard on topics including school book lists,” a spokeswoman said.