Friday, April 07, 2000
Teach kids to be 'culturally competent'
BY CINDY KRANZ
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Teaching children about diversity, experts say, must begin at home. The earlier, the better.
Dr. Revella Logan Love, president and CEO of Culturally Competent Communications in Roselawn, does diversity training workshops nationwide for schools, universities and companies.
She dislikes the word tolerance. “Tolerance means you put up with, versus honor, support and celebrate differences,” says Dr. Logan Love, who prefers the term, “cultural competence.”
“Cultural competence is the ability to effectively interface with people from different cultures, to honor their integrity and celebrate those differences,” Dr. Logan Love says.
Teaching children cultural competence is not only the right thing to do, she says, but understanding and getting along with other cultures is one of the skills children will need for this millennium.
“Companies are now saying to be competitive, you need to honor, get along with and have the skills to interface with people of different cultures.”
The first step toward helping children develop cultural competency begins with parents, she says. They must examine their own views and rid themselves of any stereotypes.
“People do change and can be inspired to re-create new thoughts around their old ideas about culture,” Dr. Logan Love says. “Sometimes, all it takes is the desire. "I don't want to pass this legacy on that my parents and forefathers game to me. I want to stop that old stuff from perpetuating itself.”'
For starters, adults must be role models, showing their children how they honor and value other people. “I can talk all day long, but what counts is how I act as a parent,” she says. “I model with words, deeds and actions.”
Dr. Logan Love suggests parents bring multicultural books and music into their home, arrange play dates with children of different cultures or abilities, enroll children in diverse schools, worship in diverse congregations and attend cultural festivities, such as the Black Family Reunion or Latin American Culture Fest.
“Those kinds of activities introduce children to the beauty and strength of other cultures, so they don't think the culture is outside of me, but it's a part of me,” Dr. Logan Love says.
She also suggests watching television specials and movies about the history and struggles of different ethnic groups. “You have to ask, "How do you think people feel who are treated differently in society?' You have to help children develop mindfulness and a heart, then help them develop the tools to move out of their comfort zone.”
Have you ever been in a grocery store when your young child blurted something out about the person next to you? Perhaps it was a person of color or someone in a wheelchair. Certain the other person heard, you're mortified. What to do?
“I call it a "holy moment,' ” Dr. Logan Love says. “Take that moment to teach ... A parent can't ignore it. What a parent ignores they also are promoting without realizing it.”
Consider the age of the child, she says, but your holy moment could go something like this:
“Mama is really sorry to hear you say that. I'm not sure where you got it. It hurts me to hear you talk like that about another person. It hurts that other person to hear you talk like that, too. How would you feel if someone said something like that about you? You know, every person has value.”
The biggest hurdle in reaching out to other cultures is getting over that fear of somebody who's different, says Chris Jarman, program director for the National Conference for Community and Justice.
“People tend to get hung up on worrying about being politically correct and saying the wrong thing, so that keeps them from connecting with people who are from different races, religions and cultures.
“We're all human. We're all going to make mistakes. Those of us who do this for a living sometimes put our foot in our mouths.”
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