The recent guilty verdict of 19-year-old Karmelo Anthony has sent shockwaves through our community, serving as a painful reminder of a historical double standard. When a conflict occurs, non-Black youth are frequently granted the grace of being viewed as "kids making mistakes," while Black youth are routinely adultified, perceived as inherent aggressors, and funneled into the criminal justice system through someone else's aggression.
For Foundational Black American (FBA) parents and non-Black parents raising Black children, cases like this prove that situational awareness is a survival skill. Don't fuck around and find out. We cannot always tell who harbors explicit or implicit bias simply by looking at them.
Therefore, we must equip our children with the tools to vet their environments, recognize hidden risks, and protect their freedom. We can't let them roam if it's not our property that we own and they go to designated areas, we're behind enemy lines. Just going around them just to hang out should be a no no, and we already know they're ready to slither near us playing around to test our patience. We were told when we were small, you can't trust them as far as you can throw them and it still holds true.
I doubt this was a jury full of the elderly, they're in our age groups, so it's not just older White people. It was a Jury of anti-Black OPPs.
Here is how you can structure "The Talk" for today’s reality.
1. Shift from "Colorblindness" to Character Vetting
We must teach our children that a peer who seems friendly at school or on social media may not always represent a safe environment. True friendship requires active vetting.
- Identify Red Flags: Teach your child to observe how non-Black so-called peers react to Black culture, racial jokes, or news events involving systemic injustice. If a peer laughs at, minimizes, or excuses casual racism, they are not a safe ally. That's an OPP.
- The Household Standard: Before allowing your child to spend time at a non-Black friend's home, make it a strict rule to meet the parents. Not just meet their parents one time, you need to know what's up because you can peep it much better than they can, although some children are more on-code than their parents. Observing the household dynamics, the neighborhood environment, and how the parents interact with a Black child can reveal underlying biases before your child is left unsupervised. You don't want your child floating in a pool and demons acting dumb about how they died, so I say don't leave them anywhere you can't be if they aren't going with your people you trust. When they have to go to school, that's one thing but they still need to have the ability to express themselves to you to give you the heads up about anything. Non-Black parents of Black children have to definitely be heads up, especially if you know how some of your family members get down. Don't serve your children up to demons who see it in their heart to harm or delete your baby.
2. Understand Boundaries and High-Risk Spaces
An escalating argument in an unfamiliar space can change a young life in a matter of seconds. Boundaries must be clearly defined.
- Recognizing "Outsider" Dynamics: Teach youth that non-Black spaces—such as a different school’s team area, a friend's private property, or an unfamiliar neighborhood—can instantly become hostile if a conflict arises. In these spaces, onlookers and institutions are statistically more likely to view the Black child as an unauthorized intruder. If they don't have to be there, it's not worth the risk if they aren't with you. Having a desire to be around them folks should never be something instilled in them, we see what happens with the some children desperate to be up under Becky and Brad. That's not a goal to have in life.
- De-escalation Over Confrontation: Explicitly explain the legal trap of "provoking the difficulty." Under many state laws, if a Black child uses words to egg on a fight, they can legally forfeit their right to self-defense. Emphasize that backing away and removing oneself from a tense situation is a tactical victory, not an act of cowardice. Backing away and letting it be known that they don't want to be bothered, touched, or hit can be a chess move. The other person was bothering them, they were backing up to reach a safe distance to prevent the aggressor from attacking them from behind. If they have to defend themselves, they will have that trump card. Backing up will also give them time to pull out their cell phone to record the person and explain the situation too.
- Educate Your Children: Do not sleep on educating your child, that's neglect in my opinion. You are failing them if they can't articulate themselves, and you would be the one setting them up. They need to be a junior detective around this bitch, and that's real shit. They need to be able to describe persons, places, and things because their freedom may depend on it. They need to have the ability to connect those dots too just incase these God Damned demons try to lie to make some allegations stick. We put them in their place growing up and we weren't going to sit up and let a lie fly. It didn't matter if it was a child or an adult. Hell no, somebody's telling a lie you don't just sit up there and let it happen, catch them in that damn lie. Debate with your children and all that shit. Our children need to be the sharpest knives in the drawer next to us. Be your child's biggest teacher, that's your job.
A cop tried to lie on me recently about speeding down a street here in Orlando. I asked him where he saw me speeding to trip him up and he said Kirkman. I asked his ass how could that be possible if I just turned on Kirkman from Vineland at the previous light?
I got a receipt from the gas station I just came from around the corner, it wasn't even on that street so either he's mistaking me for someone else or he's trying to make some shit up. I always get my receipt, even if I have to go inside because its evidence. I told him if I get a ticket, I will go back to the store to get a statement from the dude at the counter and fight it.
That's when he claimed we don't have to take it that far, claiming it was his mistake. No, it's not a mistake, they just think we're stupid. I wasn't going to argue with him about the pseudo-mistake but I knew his ass was lying and he knew I was prepared to bust that U and go right back up to that gas station to get my proof. Also, my vehicle has the gas mileage tracker that goes down when you drive less efficient through city streets. I'm not burning through this high ass gas, so I would've gotten the ticket tossed.
Our children have to have the ability to stop these demons from using lies against them. I advise my people to be on point at work, and do the same with their children. We're training them for survival, so don't sleep on this. - The "No-Questions-Asked" Exit Strategy: Establish a family code word. If your child feels uncomfortable, notices racial tension building, or realizes a situation with non-Black peers is souring, they can text the code word for an immediate, no-questions-asked pickup if you let them go somewhere. After that text, they can go on face time with you so you can get their while advising them in real time.
3. Normalize Culturally Safe Spaces
There is immense value and safety in community insulation. Children need to know it is healthy to prioritize spaces where their humanity is default, not when a non-Black person permits it.
- Affirming Black Brotherhood and Sisterhood: Encourage your children to cultivate a strong, core circle of Black peers. In these spaces, they do not have to "mask," manage white fragility, or worry about the underlying racial dynamics that frequently complicate mixed-peer groups. Fuck that.
- Protecting Peace: Teach youth that choosing to limit their vulnerability around people who do not understand their lived reality is a mature boundary designed to protect their mental peace and physical safety. Speaking of peace, a number of FBA kids thrived during covid because they didn't have to sit up in that damn school dealing with shit some parents aren't willing to make time to squash at that school. Home school and home school groups are great. Children take preparation, and if you aren't financially ready then do what you need to do so that you don't put them in a bad situation.
You don't want to lose them, right?
You don't want to end up forced to work every hour you can, not being able to go to things at their school, right?
How many of the business minded Brothas get shitted on out here in the street who could make for great husbands, and make that more of a reality?
The business class helped our Black towns take shape, and not face the recessions these jealous demons did, right?
Peace can be protected on a new level when you check off the right boxes.
4. Direct, Honest Truths
Children are highly perceptive. Attempting to shield them from the realities of systemic bias can leave them unprepared. Coons lie to their children, and those children suffer in silence.
- Be Direct: Tell them clearly: "You cannot know who is racist just by looking at them. Because the justice system treats Black youth differently, your safety depends on your situational awareness, the spaces you choose, evidence, and your exit strategies."
- Empower Their Agency: Frame this conversation around their power. Systemic unfairness exists, but by controlling their reactions, choosing their circles wisely, wielding them facts in their favor, knowing when to walk away, and knowing they can call on you, they can maintain a level of control over their own future. Talk with your children, share your own experiences too.
