A Black Mother Reflects On Giving Her 3 Sons 'The Talk' ... Again And Again

While the police killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, in addition to thousands of protests, have sparked new conversations across the country, one thing that's remained for many families is "the talk."

This is the talk that Black parents give their children, particularly their sons, about how they should deal with the police if they encounter them. It is a hard talk, a sad talk. And the stakes are really high.

Sam Sanders, host of It's Been A Minute from NPR sits down with Kenya Young, the executive producer of NPR's Morning Edition, to discuss how she talks with her three sons and what we can all learn from these types of dialogues.

This conversation has been edited for length and clarity for reading. You can listen to the powerful conversation here or stream it at the top of this page.

Sam Sanders: Kenya knows this talk all too well. She's my colleague and the executive producer of NPR's Morning Edition. (That means she runs the whole show.) She's also the mother of three Black boys.

Kenya Young: I have a 16 1/2-year-old, a 14-year-old and a 4-year-old.

As the Black mother of three Black boys, you're having to talk to them about the news in a very specific way. What are you saying to them about George Floyd and his death and the police and these protests?

You know, it's obviously not the first time.