Conversations about race and racism can be uncomfortable enough for adults. But too often, we don’t think about the messages our children are receiving about race from the adults in their lives. One podcast is on a mission to help adults find age-appropriate ways to break down complex topics like racism and implicit bias for young children.
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The “Early Risers” podcast is a partnership between Little Moments Count – a statewide collaborative of organizations in Minnesota that promote positive interactions with babies and children – and Minnesota Public Radio. The idea for the show came to founding host Dianne Haulcy in 2021, in the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd.
Haulcy, who currently serves as Assistant Commissioner for the Early Childhood Administration at the Minnesota Department of Children, Youth, and Families, believes that the best way to root our racism in our society is to reach children when they are young and raise them to have a clear and informed understanding of our racial and cultural differences. Haulcy hosted “Early Risers” until 2024, when Andre Dukes took over as permanent host.
“I’ve learned that we need to be intentional about helping all children to have conversations about race so they can develop positive racial identities,” Haulcy says in one episode.
Over the course of seven seasons, “Early Risers” episodes have covered a wide range of topics, including how babies begin to learn about race and how teachers should respond when a racialized incident happens in an early childhood classroom. There are even honest conversations with white parents about the steps they are taking to understand what anti-racist parenting looks like in their homes.
And the talk doesn’t have to stop when the episode is over. There are also discussion guides created for the episodes that include questions parents and teachers can use to spark even more conversation.
“Early Risers” has become a valuable resource to parents and families, winning the award for Best Family and Parenting Podcast at the Black Podcasting Awards for 2024 and 2025 and receiving lots of positive feedback from the adults it has helped.
“I can’t say enough good things about this podcast!” wrote one reviewer on Apple Podcasts. “By its very existence it challenges the prevailing belief that little children can’t engage in conversations about race.”
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