Forward Thinking for Our Girls
A few days after the highly publicized attack on the U.S. Capitol, education organizations thoughtfully and rapidly provided lists for how to discuss the riots with different age groups (see a partial list here). I am adding to the suggestions and dedicate this Kim’s Corner on how to talk with adolescent girls of color. Understanding that girls of color are hardly a monolith, my suggestions are filtered through an intersectional prism. Far from an exhaustive list, I consider how we as researchers, program developers, and funders can prepare ourselves and African American, Native American, Latinx, Pacific Islander, and Native Hawaiian girls to wrestle with current realities and tomorrow's potential.
Many girls of color are quite aware of the socio-historical implications of racism-sexism. For instance, African American girls understand their likelihood to be suspended and/or expelled from their schools is higher than any other race-gender group. Conversations about the siege and other recent disturbing events, should begin with recognizing what our daughters already know no matter how tragic. Building on their knowledge, recognizing it as a reflection in the pool of -isms (racism, sexism, homophobism, and so forth) is an important first step encouraging critical inquiry.
Girls of color continue to be sorely underrepresented in technology. Yet, it was AI that allowed for the identification of rioters. AI is a new field with an incredible amount of potential. There are a few AI-for-social-good programs (i.e. Technovation) and these programs know that girls will be most interested in technology if it solves a larger problem. In the main, gender-only initiatives fail to consider the complexity of girls of color and the girlhoods they create and navigate. Literature has already documented the positive effects of culturally responsive computing for some girls of color. As a result, more culturally responsive AI initiatives are desperately needed. The Good AI is an exemplary, new enterprise stating its ambition is for culturally inclusive strategies and products. Let's take their work as a model for what could occur with adolescent girls of color.
The time seems ripe to revisit the significance of coalition building. Conversations with our daughters should be grounded in how to build the interpersonal and intrapersonal “dynamic, enduring, and ever-evolving mobilizations” known as coalitions. No one individual can effectively challenge the systemic isms that have brought us to this point. Working with girls of color to build action-oriented, forward thinking, sustainable coalitions needs to be at the forefront.
How to be an agent of change in these troubling times needs serious exploration. It does little good for girls of color to witness the continuous horror and not consider how to do something. Yes, dialogue and analysis are important but they need to be accompanied with critical praxis towards social justice ends. How to collectively challenge structural isms takes time to plan and even more to execute. Determining coordinated goals and ways to measure their success can be led by our daughters if provided ample opportunities and resources.
Girls of color constitute the majority of our female K-12 population. Soon they will live out the legacy of how we as adults respond to today’s issues. We can serve our daughters best by doing more than having “tough conversations.” We must poise them to be the technosocial agents our society needs to survive today's troubling times and thrive in future days.
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