‘Sesame Street’ will air special to teach kids how to speak up against racism

Sesame Street has been a go-to resource for parents for decades, but especially during 2020. It’s difficult to distill so many trending, important topics into bite-sized learnings kiddos can understand when the news cycle feels overwhelming, but our favorite characters are doing just that.

Earlier this year, Big Bird, Elmo and friends had a special to help explain COVID-19 to children and a town hall to discuss racism—and this week, they’re expanding that conversation, encouraging kids to stand up against racism in a new special, “The Power of We,” airing October 15.

“We believe that this moment calls for a direct discussion about racism to help children grasp the issues and teach them that they are never too young to be ‘upstanders’ for themselves, one another and their communities,” said Kay Wilson Stallings, Executive Vice President of Creative and Production at Sesame Workshop.

The special will focus on Elmo, Abby Cadabby, 6-year-old Muppet Gabrielle and her 8-year-old cousin Tamir, guiding children on how to stand up to unfair treatment based on skin (or fur) color. With two new songs and a few star-studded appearances by Black-ish actor Yara Shahidi, Rise Up singer Andra Day and Hamilton actor Christopher Jackson, it’ll be an interactive way to get such an important conversation going in your home.

Ready to watch? Tune into PBS KIDS, local PBS station or HBO Max on October 15, or catch a replay on your local PBS network or the PBS KIDS 24/7 channel. And, you can always check out their parenting resources on racism to continue the convo.