The current administration has caused a significant change in people. Many of us are learning how to be civically engaged. The question is, how can we engage when we have young kids? Even better, how can we include them?
Should I Take My Child to a Protest?
Truly, that decision is up to you, but there are a couple of things to keep in mind when considering it. There’s no guarantee that the protest will be child-friendly. We have seen parents post saying their children are bored at protests, wondering why there isn’t a bouncy house or something set up for them. Children aren’t usually the main audience of a protest. While many people have been able to successfully protest with their children, that isn’t always the case.
Personally, I don’t think my mom would have been able to take me to a protest as a kid. That’s without even considering how protests are made unsafe. We’ve seen the police and the National Guard set curfews and shoot rubber bullets into crowds of protestors and at journalists.
Meanwhile, judges have been arrested for helping those at risk. ICE is detaining and, in some cases, deporting U.S. citizens. These are all reasons for us to be protesting, and there are countless more.
However, the decision to take a child to a protest has to be made on a case by case basis. Only a parent can decide what is best for their kid. In the meantime, there are alternatives to protests.
What Can We Do Instead To Get Involved?
If you’d like your child to be involved in protest prep without actually attending it themselves, you can have them help make signs. Even better, you can provide the house where people drop their kids off in order to go to a protest, because childcare is a barrier to a lot of protest activities. You can potentially collect supplies so that people have access to water, snacks, and other necessities in order to be safe at protests. Most of all, you can educate your child about what a protest is, why people are protesting, and why such civic engagement is important. You can tell them that when they are older, you can potentially go to a protest together.
A protest might not be the ideal way for your child to get involved if they are easily bored, don’t like being outside, or are easily overstimulated. It’s important to know that there are other ways to get involved. You could create a virtual protest for people who can’t get out in the streets. Talk about what’s important to all of you. Talk about ways that you can take action.
Being Civically Engaged on the Local Level
You can also be involved on a local level outside of protests. Volunteering with local food banks or local food pantries was a great experience for me as a kid. You can also collect items to create “blessing bags,” which are bags containing necessities for houseless people. You can donate to an organization that will distribute them or keep them in your car in case anybody needs them.
If your area has a community garden, you could volunteer there. Some community gardens provide fresh produce to people who don’t usually have access to it. Soup kitchens can also be a way to provide food to local people. Volunteer at your local Boys & Girls Club. Sometimes they need help serving food on the holidays.
In addition to the Boys & Girls Club, organizations like libraries and local charities can also have volunteer opportunities. Sometimes it’s easier to find opportunities around the holidays. If you have the means, you can sponsor an angel tree to give gifts to a child in need. If you don’t have the means, you can volunteer to organize the donations for Angel Tree programs. Consider putting together a Little Free Library for your neighborhood, and you and your child can buy the books or ask for donations to stock it.
Showing Up for Our Neighbors
You can also do simple things on a person to person basis. You can prepare meals for neighbors or through programs like Lasagna Love. Send neighbors cards so they know someone is thinking of them. Sometimes, we overlook how important caring for our neighbors is. Building relationships with those around us can serve as the building blocks for collective action. At a time where it feels like they are trying to make us feel alone, it is important to show up for each other and show that we aren’t.
A Larger-Scale Impact
There are also opportunities with large-scale organizations and causes. Mikaila Ulmer of Me and the Bees Lemonade is a great example of this. In her book Bee Fearless, she talks about creating her lemonade business as a way to raise money to save bees. You can host a lemonade stand or a bake sale and donate the profits to a cause or charity close to your heart. Telling people why you are hosting it also spreads the word for your cause.
Charity walks and charity runs are also forms of civic engagement. Does your child enjoy athletic activities? Do they easily bore or tire? Charity walks where you go lap by lap are a good starting point for younger children. I very much don’t recommend starting with 5ks. As much as I love my memories of volunteering with my mom, I do not love the ones involving 5ks. Really, the best thing that you can do is ask your kid: “We can do this, or we can do that. Which one would you prefer?”
Educating Future Activists
Regardless, it’s important to teach your kid about the various methods of civic engagement that exist. And don’t forget to listen to your kid, to what they’re passionate about and how they’d like to get involved. There’s a long history of child activists, and your kid could be the next one.
Your kids are the ones inheriting this planet. Make sure they know they have a say in it.
