Antiracist Parenting Podcast

In this episode, SooJin and Hannah engage in a rich discussion with soulmates, Laura and Daren Hill. The conversation flows like a slow, meandering river as we challenge ourselves to slow down and be more like water: adaptable, strong, gentle, powerful, vulnerable, interconnected, and expansive. We break down “knowledge” by getting to know our ledges (boundaries) and defining ourselves on our own...

In this episode, SooJin and Hannah are joined by Dr. Kale Bantigue Fajardo who shares his experience with “trans-local” (long distance) parenting. As a trans Dad living in another state, Kale is particularly committed to loving his 11-year-old daughter, Nia, unconditionally. Through their relationship, Nia is seeing that there are different ways to express love, family, and desire. She is learning...

In this episode, SooJin and Hannah sit down with TV personality Melissa Beck (formerly known as Melissa Howard) from MTV’s reality series The Real World: New Orleans (2000). Melissa found her true calling in motherhood and is raising three mixed-race daughters with her partner, Justin. As an antiracist parent, Melissa is helping her children to “see” difference by immersing them into different - a...

In the last episode of Season 1, SooJin and Hannah tap into the power of Sankofa as they reflect back on the season. They discuss the ways in which their lives have been transformed by the podcast, sharing what they’ve learned from our past guests in order to understand their present moment and future possibilities. Hannah shares the process she’s been engaged in with her white family to tackle di...

Welcome to Season 2 of the Antiracist Parenting Podcast! We start off the season with an AMAZING guest, Malaika Parker, who is the Director at Adoptive Parents of Color Collaborative. Malaika is committed to building whole and complete futures for her biological and adopted children. She does this, in partnership with her spouse, by being honest always, centering the humanity of Black people, and...

SooJin and Hannah bring in 9/11 expert Deepa Iyer to process the horrific terrorist attacks that took place twenty years ago. Deepa describes 9/11 as a watershed moment in history that significantly changed the way South Asian, Arab, Muslim, and Sikh communities were perceived in the U.S. Since then, racial anxiety, Islamophobia, and anti-immigrant sentiment have only gotten stronger - making the...

In this episode, SooJin and Kyle talk about how art, spoken word, and poetry can serve as door ways to talk to our children about larger, more complex systems of oppression. Through his work on dismantling toxic masculinity, Kyle points out how harmful forms of masculinity are embedded throughout white supremacist culture, capitalism, and other systems of oppression as it informs dominant notions...

In this special bonus episode, SooJin speaks to Dianna Myles, the founder of the The Angela Day School, to raise awareness of this new antiracist school that is scheduled to open in Fall 2022. Listen to find out more about this school, how you can get involved and enroll your children, and what the upcoming November info sessions will be about. Our conversation also delves into what antiracist par...

In this episode, SooJin and E.G. talk about the Minnesota artist community, the importance of “being in the tradition” a la Amiri Baraka, and how he and his partner are raising their two Black boys to be sensitive, confident, and creative souls. E.G. spits all kinds of wisdom, as he discusses how the women in his life, along with embracing his own feminine energy, has nurtured a healthy masculinit...

In this episode, SooJin brings in spiritual wellness consultant and restorative yoga teacher Marjorie Grevious to share the wisdom and insights she’s garnered from witnessing how toxic masculine definitions of what it means to be a “man” has robbed the men in her life. She discusses not only how men are complicit in toxic masculinity but also women and offers a powerful alternative to toxic mascul...

This episode is sure to lift your spirits! Hannah is back - she and SooJin are enlightened by Miranda (daughter of Emilia Gonzalez Avalos from Episode 4) and Amira (daughter of Laura and Daren Hill from Episode 10). Every word oozes with wisdom and brilliance. With the help of these two girls, we learn how to open our hearts wider, how to be more curious, how to find our people and build community...

In this episode, SooJin and Hannah bring in former guest Kate Towle (Episode 3) and her long-time friend Sharon White to talk about building relationships across difference. We learn how Sharon and Kate were raised by parents who modeled the practice of cultivating interracial friendships, and how that translated into their own lives. As they reflect on their 20-year friendship, Sharon and Kate re...

SooJin and Hannah sit down with prolific author and editor Veronica Chambers of the New York Times to discuss her recent book entitled Call and Response: The Story of Black Lives Matter . This conversation is epic, exploring the history of the BLM movement and how we can all play a part in moving the ball forward a little bit. Veronica poses thoughtful questions and weaves in her own personal expe...

SooJin and Hannah mix it up in this episode - featuring co-host, Hannah Carney - to launch a four-part series on What White People Are Doing. This series is in response to a question posed by previous guest Marjorie Grevious (from Episode 19). Hannah opens the conversation by sharing personal stories, grappling out loud with some of the nuance that she is navigating, and providing a glimpse of wha...

SooJin and Hannah sit down with Delia McGrath (Hannah’s 83-year-old aunt!) for this sweeping episode. Delia was born in 1939 at the outbreak of World War II. She was raised in a large family of 14 children, attended segregated schools, married a Filipino man, and raised two biracial daughters who now have their own children (Delia’s four beautiful grandchildren). Delia has always known that racism...

SooJin and Hannah sit down with Margaret Gerstle (Hannah’s 63-year-old aunt!) for this brave episode. Margaret shares how her commitment to redistributing wealth has helped her to better understand the true needs of her community, to learn new tools for addressing racism, to expand her network of friends, and to strengthen her overall sense of self-confidence. We love her humility and courage as s...

SooJin and Hannah round out this 4-part series by talking with Hannah’s cousin, Laura Holsen. Laura reflects on how she used to notice interracial couples and wonder what that experience must be like. Then she fell in love with and married someone from a different racial background! Laura’s relationship with her spouse, Sunny, has greatly shifted her awareness around privilege and motivates her to...

This episode is chock full of goodness and light! SooJin and Hannah are joined by Hannah’s 8-and-a-half-year-old son (Anthony) for the first part of the episode. He shares what racism is, what we can do to stop it, and what has been helpful for him so far in learning about racism and antiracism. After saying goodbye to Anthony, SooJin and Hannah reflect on Season 2 and the major transformations th...

We have been living in COVID times now for five months, seeing the death toll continue to rise in the United States - currently standing at more than 170,000 deaths. And our country’s other pandemic, racism, is alive and well. Breonna Taylor was murdered by police while sleeping in her home in February and George Floyd was killed, very publicly, by police in May. In this inaugural episode, SooJin...

We have been living in COVID times now for five months, seeing the death toll continue to rise in the United States - currently standing at more than 170,000 deaths. And our country’s other pandemic, racism, is alive and well. Breonna Taylor was murdered by police while sleeping in her home in February and George Floyd was killed, very publicly, by police in May. In this episode, SooJin and Hannah...

We have been living in COVID times now for five months, seeing the death toll continue to rise in the United States - currently standing at more than 190,000 deaths. And our country’s other pandemic, racism, is alive and well. Breonna Taylor was murdered by police while sleeping in her home in February and George Floyd was killed, very publicly, by police in May. In this episode, SooJin and Hannah...

In this episode, Emilia Gonzalez Avalos (Executive Director of Navigate MN/Unidos MN) to join us shares her powerful and painful story of coming to the US from Mexico, what life is like for undocumented immigrants living in this country, and the threat she and her children and other Latinx families face everyday because of the targeted attack against them under the current administration.  Given t...

In this episode, SooJin and Hannah speak with Crixell Shell, the Assistant Executive Director of the MN Peacebuilding Leadership Institute. Our conversation is both timely and robust. Crixell shares ways she has been talking with her teenage son about the election - instilling critical values around humanity and respect while also supporting him to form his own opinions. She helps us take a big st...

In this episode, SooJin and Hannah sit down with Dr. Kathleen Devore, a Professor​ of English​ at Minneapolis Community Technical College. This is the perfect conversation to kick off a new year and our three​-​part series. As someone who experienced a challenging childhood, Kathleen understands pain and trauma. She also understands her white privilege and has been working to undo racism for decad...

In this episode, SooJin and Hannah talk with Mary Moriarty, former Chief Public Defender in Hennepin County, Minnesota. During our discussion, Mary shares many stories that shaped her antiracism journey while living in Minnesota. Minnesota is considered to be a progressive state; however, it struggles with some of the worst racial disparities in our nation. Her examples clearly illustrate how raci...