Were you taught how to think about politics or simply who to support?

With the 2026 midterm elections approaching, Shou and Kevin welcome Renaud (G.P.) to the Roots 2 Realities family!

Together, they unpack Massachusetts' nine ballot questions, political party loyalty, voting, and the influence of family and culture on our beliefs.

From politics in Haitian households to raising children who think independently, this conversation asks a bigger question: Are we making our own political decisions, or carrying forward beliefs we never questioned?

🎙️ Pull up a chair. Let's talk.

Were we really respectful children or did we just know better than to question adults?

Growing up in Haitian and Caribbean households came with unwritten rules, strict expectations, and consequences you didn't dare test.

But now that we're parents, we're asking whether obedience and respect are really the same thing.

Shou and Kevin revisit the lessons they grew up with, the habits they're still unlearning, and the challenges of raising children who have a voice without letting them run the household.

Because there's a difference between raising children who behave when you're watching and children who know how to think when you're not.

What are you keeping from your upbringing and what are you choosing to change?

Da’Vinchi’s viral comments about American work ethic and “incompetence” opened up a much bigger conversation.

Shou and Kevin unpack the controversy through the lens of growing up Haitian American, from the expectations around education, sacrifice and self-sufficiency to the long-standing tension between Caribbean immigrants and Black Americans.

But this isn’t just about who “works harder.”

It’s about what we were taught hard work should look like, whether convenience has made us less capable or simply more efficient, and what happens when cultural pride becomes cultural comparison.

How much of your work ethic is a value you chose and how much is a survival strategy you inherited?