Welcoming Diverse Families

A family from Nigeria has recently immigrated into the United States and their female child will be enrolling into the daycare center that I am employed. The family is from the Delta State part of Nigeria where female education is not as serious as the boys. In an article provided by the UNFPA, Nigerian Girls, states that poverty and economic issues, early marriage and teenage pregnancy, inadequate school infrastructure and cultural and religious misinterpretation are the main issues that prevent girls from going to school compared to the boys. (UNFIEC, 2007) As child care director, I would have to educate myself and my staff on ways to first communicate with this family. We need to know what gestures offend this family as well as their surface and deep culture. We have to be aware of our personal or hidden biases. We have to learn ways to understand their mission for enrolling their child into this program. Once we understand the family’s mission for their child, we can begin to further help them with needed resources to understand the center’s mission to educate young children. Opening communication doors can involve the director asking questions to see if the family needs further assistance that the program can offer, such as resources for housing, employment and so on. I think that this will help to break cultural barriers when help is offered from the people that will be embracing their child. Understanding their rituals and beliefs is also important to understand and made a note of for future events that may go against their cultural beliefs. Allowing the child to bring items from home will help the child with the transition. In conclusion, welcoming the family and fully understanding their individual need is important to their child’s process. The family enrolling their child into the program should be a must know that this family goes against the fact that girls education is not equal as the boys in the area that they are from and values their female child’s education. Reference: UNFIEC. (2007). Nigerians Girls. Nigeria Country Office http://www.unicef.org/wcaro/WCARO_Nigeria_Factsheets_GirlsEducation.pdf

Memories that can be harmful

When thinking back and digging into my journey thus far, I can remember many experiences with biases, prejudices and oppression from my own race as well as others. One incident of oppression that I experienced while I was going through grade school, middle school and high school was being called a white girl although I am Black. I tried my best to fit in with my own culture but it was difficult to be accepted by them. I felt as if I was hated because of the tone of my skin. One prejudice that I can remember that is fresh living in a suburban neighborhood with the dominant culture. The people that surround me make it obvious that they do not like Blacks. My family has not done anything to receive the looks and lack of waves from the neighbors. It is sad, but it has become funny because it reveals one’s ignorance on diversity, it shows me that some have cold hearts, plus, it is a great teaching moment for my children so that they will not endure harm for being different. I laugh because I want my children to get use to the way that the world really is. It also helps them to accept the ignorance of others in a better way as well as accepting the cultural differences of others. I tell them that it is not our neighbors fault; for they are only human. These experiences are events of diminished equality. I grew up feeling as if I was not good enough for neither group, my own race nor the dominant race. I later learned that I had to change those negative feelings into positive ones, so I began to use them as motivation tools. I strive to become successful at a level to where my children are comfortable; for they are part of the reasons as to why I continue on this journey of positives over negatives when thinking of the paradigms of others. I refusing to accept the oppression of others. I feel the need to educate young children on equal rights for all and to treat others like they want to be treated. I want all children to love the skin that they are in and that no one can tell them who they are; for they can have the abilities to be successful. I want to help children to understand the deep meaning of respecting diversity and having equal rights. In conclusion, I think that my experiences have helped to make me the strong woman that I am today. I wholeheartedly believe that the passion that I have for everyone helps me to cope with my own issues with the views of others as I strive to be comfortable in the skin that I am in.