Cultivating Self-Esteem in Black Girls: Why It Matters and How To Do It

Anyone who has a Black child is often faced with the challenge of developing self-esteem for kids who may have difficulty making connections in society.

Girls often have a lack of freedom to explore their racial identity and to embrace it. Here are a few ways to develop self-esteem in Black girls to ensure they can thrive in their environments and love themselves.

Start At Home

Self-esteem is first developed in the home where young girls feel the safest and most secure before heading off into the world each day. Having an understanding of healthy relationships can help Black girls feel confident in what they have to offer other individuals, which makes it necessary to form solid relationships within the family unit.

Fathers also need to communicate to their daughters that they’re beautiful and valued and that they are seen. It’s also useful giving them positive books and representative media so they feel more comfortable with their identity.

Understand Healthy Relationships

The relationships that your daughter has inside and outside of the home will influence how much confidence she has in herself.

This source explains that children crave attention and tend to be less discerning at young ages about where it comes from, which is why it’s important to teach them from the beginning to understand how they should be treated by others.

Lead by example as a parent you’re your own relationships, and communicate what is healthy and what shouldn’t be permitted for proper self-respect.

Model Body Acceptance

Young girls often model the behavior of their mothers when it comes to how they perceive their bodies and appearances. You can only expect your daughter to develop self-esteem if she sees you accepting your own body.

This source recommends avoiding voicing your insecurities or asking your daughter if you look fat in a certain pair of jeans. Don’t put yourself down or talk about what you want to improve about your body, which will naturally cause your daughter to begin to analyze her own looks and to become insecure about any flaws that she may think she has with her appearance.

Talk more about intelligence, being kind, and working hard to ensure she focuses more on her characteristics rather than on her outward features.

Although it may be increasingly difficult to raise a young Black daughter with self-respect and confidence in today’s society, some specific tips and techniques will prove to be effective as she grows.

With the right practices established in the home, she can mature and develop into a well-rounded and independent individual.

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Read this other great article about black children and women!