What Kind of World Am I Leaving For My Children?

As hate crimes rise for the first time in three years, Nikesh Shukla reflects on the conversations we all need to be having around racism and the rise of the far-right

‘Being anti-racist is not a passive act. You can’t just decide you are not racist and that be enough’. Photo: Supplied by Nikesh Shukla

The thought keeps me up at night. How do I prepare my children for this world? How can I be honest with them about the way things are? And how do I keep them limitless in considering the way things could be?

On a recent walk through the woods, as we enjoyed the crunch of leaves under our boots, I asked my eldest child what she would change about the country if she found herself as its leader tomorrow.

She declared that the first thing she would do is make all cars electric. Before she could get stuck into the detail of that, she carried on listing her big ideas: stopping arms sales to Israel; pulling down all the flags; making everyone sign a kindness charter so we can be nicer to each other.

I smiled – partly out of worry that I have radicalised my babies, but also partly because I am glad that I haven’t shied away from talking to them about the way the world is. And because they’re kids – unconcerned with bureaucracy, budgets, and detail – the solutions feel easy. I want to keep it that way.

I wish I didn’t have to burden my child with the thought, but I have to – because the world we are handing over to our kids feels so very broken.

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