Kourtney Kardashian on Talking to Kids About Race

published 7 June 2020

Reality star and mother of three Kourtney Kardashian (opens in new tab) says she's committed to having tough, "uncomfortable" conversations with her kids about race and injustice.
Kourtney called on other parents (opens in new tab)—particularly other white parents—to educate themselves about their own privilege and to pass those lessons on to their children, too.
She stressed that the onus is on people in positions of privilege to educate themselves about racial injustice and to bare the responsibility of discussing those issues with their kids.

Kourtney Kardashian (opens in new tab) knows that some of the toughest conversations parents have with their kids are also the most vitally important. For white parents in particular, having frank, honest conversations about around race, privilege, and injustice may be uncomfortable, but they're also absolutely necessary.

In a new Instagram post, she outlined her own commitment to have those conversations—even when doing so means fighting a natural instinct to shield her kids from the darker parts of the world. The reality star and mother of three also encouraged other parents to join her continuing to educate their children and, importantly, themselves about racial injustice.

Read Kourtney's message (opens in new tab) in full below:

"As a mother, there is a natural instinct to protect my children from anything that might make them feel sad or unsafe. The pain and suffering inflicted by racism is not a thing of the past and I bare the responsibility to speak with my kids honestly and often about it, even when the truth is uncomfortable. I have to make sure they understand what it means to have white privilege and to take the time to learn and discuss Black History, beyond just one short month out of the year.

I encourage other mothers to join me in using this as a learning lesson for our children, to allow our children to feel comfortable enough to come talk to us about anything. Allow conversation without judgement, and learn from our children too. We don’t know it all. My children sometimes ask questions that I may not know the answers to, so we explore them together. I’ve felt like I’ve always been on the right side of this, but I have a lot to learn and want to educate myself even more, so that I can be a better mother, a better auntie to my nieces and nephews, a better friend, and a better person. For the rest of my note on Things I Teach My Children, go to poosh.com 🙏🏼"

A post shared by Kourtney Kardashian (@kourtneykardash) (opens in new tab)
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Kayleigh Roberts is a freelance writer and editor with more than 10 years of professional experience. Her byline has appeared in Marie Claire, Cosmopolitan, ELLE, Harper’s Bazaar, The Atlantic, Allure, Entertainment Weekly, MTV, Bustle, Refinery29, Girls’ Life Magazine, Just Jared, and Tiger Beat, among other publications. She's a graduate of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.