Making Apple Episode 4: Parenting While Black

Parenting While Black is in part a catch all phrase representing the shared experience Black parents may have when raising their children. Take Little Apple for example. With her knack for confrontation and accuracy, you have Charlene balancing being a disciplinarian while still protecting Apple’s fierce yet gentle development from forces that may try to stunt her growth or remind her of her traditionally oppressed role in society. We also bare witness to this in modern culture; when you see Toya Graham--the archetype strong Black woman--beating her child during the Baltimore protests. What Toya represents is a level of concern shared among parents of color all across the country--concern that your child, when they leave you, is unsafe in this world and susceptible to the systemic penalties of operating as a free Black child.