Jalen and Keyonna Seawright of Michigan are wielding the power of Instagram for a little history lesson.
The parents are teaching their daughters – three-year-old Karington and two-year-old Kaidence – about Black history through inspiring social media posts honoring Black leaders.
“The opportunities that they have today is from other women who paved the way,” Jalen told TODAY Parents.
“It’s important that as little young Black women that they grow up with an understanding that the reason why they have the freedoms and abilities to choose what they do is because so many other Black women of the past paved the way. I want them to engage with their history to understand," he said.
Jalen explained to the outlet that growing up, he hosted a Black History Month celebration every February at his church.
“I grew up going to a small, traditional Black church,” he said. “The kids would dress up as one of our favorite African Americans in history and explain who it was.”
Unfortunately, COVID-19 has made it difficult to celebrate the month.
“We had to get creative and do it on their own,” he explained. The parents decided to dress up Karington and Kaidnece in outfits honoring Black icons and leaders like inaugural poet Amanda Gorman, NASA astronaut Dr. Mae C. Jemison, and civil rights activist Rosa Parks. Prior to sharing the looks on Instagram, the family engages in crafts and shares a story that relates to the person they're celebration.
“I really hope that they realize that they have so much available to them as they grow up and they can be anything they want to do,” Jalen said. “And the reason they can isn’t because they’re so smart and intelligent, but [also] because there are people that sacrificed for their opportunity.”
“In this season right now where there’s a ton of division, it’s always good to engage with stories of our past and cultures that are different,” he said, adding, "We’re just trying to make our girls more aware of the past so they don’t repeat it in the future.”
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