TEENAGERS ARE AWESOME - a thread.

Just come out of a lesson with 6 year 10 lads where I felt they taught me as much as I taught them.

Plan: study racism in the media, inc the language used to describe black/white folk.

Plan scrapped after 5 minutes, when a white lad said:

‘When I was 11, I went to Croydon with my 3 black cousins. The police stopped all 4 of us. They searched my 3 cousins, but didn’t search me. I didn’t know what to say.’

Another boy, second generation Pakistani, says:

‘I play for a local cricket team. I didn’t have my pads one day. I asked the coach if I could borrow his sons. When I came out with them on, he said - ‘well you may as well keep them now.’

Then ensued a 20 minute discussion about the subtlelty of much of British racism. About how many of the boys in the room felt gaslit, and were questioning whether they even were victims of racism or not.

They were supporting each other, saying they weren’t bad people, aged 11/12, for not saying something to those racially discriminating against them.

They were encouraging each other with ways that they could stand up to future experiences of racism that they may face.

They are 14/15 years old. I feel safe with our future in their hands.