In November’s monthly meeting, the Family Voices United Lived Experience Advisory Board (LEAB) had a powerful discussion on Racial Equity led by FosterClub Lived Experience (LEx) Leader Divina Cordeiro, who was in the Massachusetts foster care system for 7 years. The LEAB brings together young people, birth parents, foster and adoptive parents, and kinship caregivers—all with firsthand experience in the child welfare system–to elevate family voices on important topics.

Here are some thought-provoking “curiosity questions”  members of the group leaned into: 

1. “Should social workers know a family’s race when deciding if a young person should go into foster care?” 

2. “What would real, “no strings attached” support for families look like if it focused on community connections?” 

3. “How can we move from “reporting” on families to truly supporting them, especially with mandated reporting?”

During the discussion, LEAB member Lynn, a kinship/relative caregiver from Washington state, shared her expertise, saying: 

“We need to support leaders within the community so there are people who understand the specific culture, languages, and needs of the individuals who live in it. Just because I think I know what a community needs, if I don’t know the culture, language and history, sometimes that kind of help actually isn’t really helpful.”

These important questions for consideration came out of LEAB members’ lived experiences. For more information about the Family Voices United campaign or the work of theLived Experience Advisory Board, contact [email protected] . To learn more about FosterClub’s work on racial equity, click here.