Kindergarten teacher gently explaining racism to her students is a must-see for all kids
"This is called racism, and racism has happened in the United States for over 400 years."

Racism is a difficult subject to discuss among adults and it can be just as challenging when talking about it with children. It's important for parents or teachers to talk about it in a way that's age-appropriate and to address any strong emotions that are caused by the discussion.
Talking about about race with kids can be difficult, but avoiding the conversation helps perpetuate racism.
"Because institutional racism is so ingrained and so automatic and so accepted, without enough people wanting to enact true, long-lasting change, institutional racism ends up becoming our personal bias. But we still must be held accountable for our actions," Sarah Gaither, assistant professor psychology and neuroscience at Duke University, told CNN Health.
Over the past few weeks, the topic of race in America has come to the forefront of the national conversation after the deaths of George Floyd, Ahmaud Abrey and Breonna Taylor. While these deaths have caused unbelievable grief anger, they present parents and educators with a teachable moment.
Vera Ahiyya, who's known affectionately as the "TuTu Teacher," is a Kindergarten teacher in Brooklyn, New York, who created a great video explaining the issue of race in America for her students.
Ahiyya does such a great job at talking about a subject at a level that children can understand it's being viewed and shared by people outside of her classroom.
Let's Talk About Racewww.youtube.com
"You may have noticed, or heard your family talk about what's happening on the news … Beyond just the COVID virus, which is spreading, we also are combating a different kind of disease," she begins the clip.
"It's something that happens with the way that people think," she adds. "Some people have the belief that people with black or brown skin should not have the same rights or privileges as people with white skin. This is called racism, and racism has happened in the United States for over 400 years. That's a very long time, and by now, you would think that something so terrible would be gone. But it's not that easy. Racism is everywhere and it is our job to stop it."
She then gives her students tips on how to handle racism when they see it in the world to stop it from spreading.
"One way to stop racism is to call it out when you see it," Ahiyya continues. "That means, if you see someone being treated differently because of the color of their skin, you have the voice, you make the choice, to say 'This is wrong.'"
"You can decide whether to say something, or walk away," she advises. "But your choice can impact the lives of a lot of people."
She then shows how people are fighting racism today by protesting in the streets.
"So, right now, what's happening is a lot of people are making the choice to say 'that's wrong, racism is wrong' and they are talking specifically about racism towards black people," Ahiyya says.
Ahiyya ends her comments by empowering children to fight back against racism.
"You can do it by writing letters to show your support," Ahiyya tells them. "You can do it by speaking up when you see something that is very wrong. You can ask questions to your family and friends about how you can do more to help. There's so many ways to help."
She concludes the video reading "Let's Talk About Race" by Julius Lester.
- Tennessee police chief tells officers who defend George Floyd's ... ›
- A note to all my fellow white folks trying to get a quick anti-racism education - Upworthy ›
- How ‘Karen’ went from a popular baby name to a stand-in for white entitlement - Upworthy ›
- How ‘Karen’ went from a popular baby name to a stand-in for white entitlement - Upworthy ›
- City council member cites Urban Dictionary in an official statement criticizing BLM - Upworthy ›
- Sorry to ruin your summer, but the 'ice cream truck' song is racist AF - Upworthy ›
- Waitress Gennica Cochran quickly and forcefully confronted a racist in her restaurant - Upworthy ›
- 'Everyday hero' Gennica Cochran quickly and forcefully confronted a racist in her restaurant. - Upworthy ›
- Lady Antebellum changed its name so it wasn't racist. Now they've sued a Black singer over hers. - Upworthy ›
- The racist ice cream man song is being replaced with a joyful new one by the Wu-Tang's RZA ›
- Student's response to a school assignment bravely challenges its cultural assumptions ›
- Indigenous woman dies in Canadian hospital after filming racist taunts from nurses - Upworthy ›
- Racists 'Zoom-bombed' Rep. Jahana Hayes' event but herresponse showed exactly how to defeat them - Upworthy ›
- Racists 'Zoom-bombed' Rep. Jahana Hayes' event but her response showed exactly how to defeat them - Upworthy ›
- A brave and compassionate teacher disarmed a school shooter then hugged her until police arrived - Upworthy ›
- 89-year-old retired math teacher is still tutoring students - Upworthy ›
- Software developer shares her story of racism in first class. - Upworthy ›
- Teacher shares her lesson on fairness using Band-aids - Upworthy ›
- Teacher and therapy dog make viral TikTok videos - Upworthy ›
- Teacher and therapy dog make viral TikTok videos - Upworthy ›
- 'Aunt Karen' infiltrated a 'White Lives Matter' group and it's as bad as you'd expect - Upworthy ›
- Sandra Bullock is brutally honest with her kids about race, because she has to be ›
- Researchers studied kindergarteners' behavior and followed up 19 years later. Here are the findings. - Upworthy ›
- A 10-panel comic explores a subtle kind of racism many people of color experience. - Upworthy ›
- Entire class of high school graduates return to retired kindergarten teacher's house to thank her - Upworthy ›
- High school graduates return to visit their beloved kindergarten teacher - Upworthy ›
- Former preschool teacher reveals funny stuff kids say - Upworthy ›
- Software developer shares her story of racism in first class. - Upworthy ›
- A 10-panel comic explores a subtle kind of racism many people of color experience. - Upworthy ›
- A 10-panel comic explores a subtle kind of racism many people of color experience. - Upworthy ›
- Studied kindergarteners' behavior and followed up 19 years later. - Upworthy ›
- A boy told his teacher she can't understand him because she's white. Her response is on point. - Upworthy ›
- A boy told his teacher she can't understand him because she's white. Her response is on point. - Upworthy ›
- Community fights for Latino waiter who received a racist threat - Upworthy ›
- A Black woman and white man share a refreshingly wholesome—and healing—exchange - Upworthy ›
There's a reason why some people can perfectly copy accents, and others can't
Turns out, there's a neurodivergent link.
A woman in black long sleeve shirt stands in front of mirror.
Have you ever had that friend who goes on vacation for four days to London and comes back with a full-on Queen's English posh accent? "Oooh I left my brolly in the loo," they say, and you respond, "But you're from Colorado!" Well, there are reasons they (and many of us) do that, and usually it's on a pretty subconscious level.
It's called "accent mirroring," and it's actually quite common with people who are neurodivergent, particularly those with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). According Neurolaunch, the self-described "Free Mental Health Library," "Accent mirroring, also known as accent adaptation or phonetic convergence, is the tendency to unconsciously adopt the accent or speech patterns of those around us. This linguistic chameleon effect is not unique to individuals with ADHD, but it appears to be more pronounced and frequent in this population."
Essentially, when people have conversations, we're constantly "scanning" for information—not just the words we're absorbing, but the inflection and tone. "When we hear an accent, our brains automatically analyze and categorize the phonetic features, prosody, and intonation patterns," writes Neurolaunch. For most, this does result in copying the accent of the person with whom we're speaking. But those with ADHD might be more sensitive to auditory cues. This, "coupled with a reduced ability to filter out or inhibit the impulse to mimic…could potentially explain the increased tendency for accent mirroring."
While the article explains further research is needed, they distinctly state that, "Accent mirroring in individuals with ADHD often manifests as an unconscious mimicry of accents in social situations. This can range from subtle shifts in pronunciation to more noticeable changes in intonation and speech rhythm. For example, a person with ADHD might find themselves unconsciously adopting a Southern drawl when conversing with someone from Texas, even if they’ve never lived in the South themselves."
People are having their say online. On the subreddit r/ADHDWomen, a thread began: "Taking on accents is an ADHD thing?" The OP shares, "My whole life, I've picked up accents. I, myself, never noticed, but everyone around me would be like, 'Why are you talking like that??' It could be after I watched a show or movie with an accent or after I've traveled somewhere with a different accent than my 'normal.'
They continue, "Apparently, I pick it up fast, but it fades out slowly. Today... I'm scrolling Instagram, I watch a reel from a comedian couple (Darcy and Jeremy. IYKYK) about how Darcy (ADHD) picks up accents everywhere they go. It's called ADHD Mirroring??? And it's another way of masking."
(The OP is referring to Darcy Michaels and his husband Jeremy Baer, who are both touring comedians based in Canada.)
Hundreds of people on the Reddit thread alone seem to relate. One comments, "Omfg I've done this my whole life; I'll even pick up on the pauses/spaces when I'm talking to someone who is ESL—but English is my first language lol."
Sometimes, it can be a real issue for those around the chameleon. "I accidentally mimicked a waitress's weird laugh one time. As soon as she was out of earshot, my family started to reprimand me, but I was already like 'oh my god I don’t know why I did that, I feel so bad.'"
Many commenters on TikTok were shocked to find out this can be a sign of ADHD. One jokes, "Omg, yes, at a store the cashier was talking to me and she was French. She's like 'Oh are you French too? No, I'm not lol. I'm very east coast Canada."
And some people just embrace it and make it work for them. "I mirror their words or phrase! I’m 30. I realized I start calling everyone sweetie cause my manager does & I work at coffee shop."