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In this week’s “Get To With With Pruitt” segment, what happens when you have a good feeling that your father-in-law may be racist? In interracial relationships, this may be a thing no matter the race, and this week’s email from a listener breaks this particular situation down.
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Read below:
My husband and I have been married for 17 years. He’s white and I’m black. I only bring up our race because of the issues we’ve had through the years. All of the family has welcomed me with loving arms. All except for my father-in-law. Although my husband says his father isn’t racist, he says he has racial sensitivity issues. I feel different.
He constantly watches Fox News and is a strong Trump supporter. Here’s an example of his insensitive comments. When our daughter was born, he said he was going to bring white crowns to lighten her up, thinking it was a funny joke, to the hospital. Now that our children are 7 and 9, it’s harder to shield them from the comment. My husband has tried to get through to his father, but he set in his ways.
I love my husband. I love his family, but it’s getting harder to deal with. How can I best handle this?
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How would our life coach, Dr. Robert Pruitt deal with this situation?
Dr. Pruitt says “Limit the time you spend interacting with his father. Limit the space you give to his father. It’s not about shifting or changing him, and I know that’s one of the most challenging things when it comes to unconditional love, right? Unconditional love does not request or require people in our lives to shift, change, or just so that we feel different. I understand that there’s a tutelage piece, right?
Like what the child sees, when he references the things that he does. But for her, I would just reduce the amount of time and energy and space that I give to him and then nurture whatever conversation perhaps is required with her husband, because there are a lot of times people say, you know, I try to do something and then they back out. So if the husband pulled back, I pull back and then if the kids are front and center, then I would just aim my finger. If you will at them and go so hubby, what do you see?
Feel sense when your father says what he says and the children look like they look.”
There is a lot more to this story so stick around and hear the response.
