Parenting Across Cultures, Continents, and Generations January 15, 2021
When I was asked to write on feminist parenting, I checked in with my adult children using social media and asked if I’m a feminist parent. With their resounding assurances – which I share later – I felt comfortable writing this essay. I begin by recounting how our children were born with feminist touches and pushes. I think birthing processes can be active, powerful, and intentional ways of transmitting to our children, while in and out of the womb, a sense of self and community in the world and of health, wellbeing and love. I reflect on feminist tendencies in the families of me and my husband, traditions which, consciously or unconsciously, certainly inspire us and which we perpetuate and also evolve. I wanted our children to be comfortable being who they are and to be free to creatively construct their identities across multiple boundaries. This is in part what qualifies me as a feminist parent. The story begins in New York City and Iowa City and then traverses the Atlantic for schooling and the ongoing negotiation of parenting in West Africa. Responsibilities for parenting extend to relatives from different generations, from Kansas City to Katiola and beyond. Collectively, we take credit for helping our young ones learn to love and respect and stand up for themselves and others as they seek to be useful in the communities of which they are a part.
The book chapter is available on Academia.edu and Researchgate.
To quote the book chapter:
Toure, K. (2020). Parenting across cultures, continents, and generations. In R. S. Dieng and A. O’Reilly, Feminist parenting: Perspectives from Africa and beyond (pp. 113-122). Bradford: Demeter.