Where Do We Come From ... Where are We Heading? Reflections on the Personal, the Systemic, and the Political

Using my personal story, I reflect on the history of the field of child development from the 1970's to the present. I recount how far have we come...but also, how far we still have to go on creating a literature where contextual forces, such as racism and other sources of oppression are considered at the core rather than the perifery of research with minoritized BILPOC (Black, Indigenous, Latinx, People of Color) families and children. As scholars of color, we not only have had to conduct/fund/publish research and teach, but also push our institutions and organizations to create the systemic and political change necessary for others to follow.