DADS READ: “Something Happened In Our Town” by authors Marianne Celano, Marietta Collins, and Ann Hazzard and illustrator Jennifer Zivoin

JER: “Something Happened In Our Town” by authors Marianne Celano, Marietta Collins, and Ann Hazzard and illustrator Jennifer Zivoin is a great book to discuss Race, Police Shootings, and Empathy.  It helps explain the social construct of Race: “Some Black people have dark brown skin, and some have light brown skin . . . ‘Black’ usually means African American.  Most of their ancestors were brought here from Africa as slaves . . . White people cake here from places in Europe, or Russia or other countries.  We are White, even though our skin is light tan.” It discusses systematic racism, and how it can be likened to a pattern on a blanket, “an unfair pattern”. It discusses the perspectives from multiple families, multiple backgrounds, and shifts to teaching empathy for other people who might be excluded, like Omad who moved “from a country far away” and was still “learning English”. 

The three Co-Authors are Psychologists with decades of experience in children’s behavioral health and social justice.  I really appreciate that they have included a helpful “Note to Parents and Guardians” at the end that provides general guidance about countering racism with children to assist in framing discussions that might come up while reading the book.