Parenting always comes with lessons, but for Kristin Davis, some of the most important ones involve making sure her two children, daughter Gemma Rose and son Wilson, grow up confident, proud, and deeply connected to their heritage.
The And Just Like That star, who adopted both children, knows that raising Black kids as a white mom means putting in intentional work every single day.
“I’ve worked hard at it,” Davis told Ebony Magazine in a recent interview. “I work so hard because you have to live in a white centered world. And I don’t want them to feel like my world is somehow more important than their world and their culture.”
That commitment shows up in her home life. Davis surrounds her kids with Black culture, from the people in their circle to the art, music, and traditions they experience. She leans on friends, fellow parents, and cultural “connectors” to help “connect the dots for them about Black culture and the excellence that it entails.”
Now that Gemma is 13, Davis is even more mindful about building her daughter’s confidence during the tricky teen years. “With friends who are Black, they help me where I can go and say, ‘How might I better phrase this? What can I do to make sure that my daughter feels amazing in her skin…It’s a big time in life. She has long braids at the moment, which is really very nineties. And she looks gorgeous when they’re piled up. I tell her, ‘You’re a goddess, you’re amazing.’ But she feels like it calls attention to herself.”
Hair care has become a bonding ritual, and a learning curve. “Some of these things are teen issues, but I wanna make sure she feels powerful. And oh, we got so many oils,” Davis says, laughing. “I’ve been on a whole journey of discovery; Miss Jody braids her hair, and she teaches me if I’ve been using too much oil or if it’s not enough creamy for her texture. I have a lot of helpers that I’ve cultivated.”
Davis also uses everyday moments, even lighthearted ones, to teach. “My kids both are obsessed with Hamilton to the point where I have to remind them that Hamilton was a white dude,” she says with a smile. Still, she loves how the show reflects diverse talent and storytelling. “It’s a great example of something that was reimagined beautifully by the cast.”
The fact that she’s worked alongside Chris Jackson, who originated the role of George Washington on Broadway and now plays Herbert Wexley on And Just Like That, gives her extra cool points at home. “The fact that I worked with George Washington, they’re like, that’s like the best thing!”
For Davis, it all comes down to this: her kids will know their history, see themselves reflected in the world around them, and feel empowered in their identity, because she’s making sure of it.
Photo Credit: Kristin Davis Instagram
