Trump, racism and Year 1

[icanteven]

Yesterday my 5yo came out of school talking about "the president", Trump and how her teacher told them that he is a bad man and hates brown people (we are in the UK).

Now, all of this is completely fair enough (although I do think that anti-Trump feeling has descended into hysteria on social media, and that maybe people should look to Clinton's dignity here, but that's a side note), but this is the first time my 5yo has encountered the idea of racism or skin colour being any more relevant than the clothes we wear. She has observed the different skin colours of children in her class from time to time, but she has never felt it relevant to mention that her teacher is black, for example. So to jump from skin colour not being a "thing" at all, to a foreign president-elect having a specific problem with non-white people was a bit of a leap for her. I think she was just politely surprised, more than anything else - she definitely didn't follow what was going on, because well, she's FIVE.

She doesn't know what a president is (although she knows we don't like the idea of a monarchy!), she just about knows what America is (she has citizenship, but has only been twice), she definitely hadn't heard of Trump before, and racism was just baffling. She wondered what it was all about, and I explained that in most countries you can only be president for so long, and it was time for America to choose their next one, but that some people don't like the new person, and think that he makes bad choices. I didn't broach the racism element, and she didn't ask. I think she just felt that bit was too off-topic for her to really follow anyway.

So, AIBU to talk to her teacher about maybe pitching politics a bit more simply to 5 year olds? Or just find out more about what she told them? I don't think it was a particularly appropriate subject.

Spoke to DH just now, and he says that DD might have absorbed him talking to DD1 about it on the way into school and conflated a few things. He pointed out that she also steadfastly maintains that she does horseriding at school, and is not what you might call a reliable witness.

He is going to ask teacher at dropoff tomorrow morning if Trump was discussed in class, rather than me sending an over-thought email with 500 words on race and racial identity.

Thanks again!

Thus reminds me of when my DS came home from school after an assembly about Nelson Mandela (following his death) telling us how he was in prison for many years when he didn't break the law.

Cue discussion that actually yes, Mandela had been a terrorist in his younger days and did break the law. And a longer discussion of the finer points of 'sometimes people do bad things even though they're good people and are doing it because they think it's for the greater good'.

Turns out DS had kind of misunderstood what they were saying and because they'd said Mandela was a good man in his mind that meant he couldn't possibly have broken the law.

But DS was in year 3 by then. The ins and outs of Trump's political ideology is probably not best suited to 5 year olds!

I do also wonder if some of the children in the class were actually afraid already?

I know a lot of even quite young black/Asian/Hispanic children in the US are very afraid not because their parents or teachers have tried to make them afraid but because other children at their school have been told (rather like children have been told since Brexit, and have told their classmates) that this man will make all the immigrants/foreigners go away.

I am going to have to talk to my Reception DS about who he is (we have family over there, may well visit them, and he's already seen his picture and asked who he is). I think children should know who he is as they will be seeing his picture and I think that referring to his bullying and prejudices should form part of this - but in a child friendly way.

And also taking into account that they will be confused about some things, like horseriding at school!

Are you sure she doesn't do horseriding at school?

A very wise teacher once told us "Don't believe everything they say happened at school, and we won't believe everything they say happens at home"!!

Always best to check what the teacher actually said first! Kids at school are talking about it between themselves, especially about how trump 'hates women and girls'. They're overhearing what their parents are saying. There would be no reason for the teacher to have spoken to the class about Trump at all.

As suggested by pps, the topic probably came up amongst the children. Most 5 year olds would have picked something up from their parents or tv and are curious. She didn't handle it particularly well but as you say she is an excellent teacher. I think it would cause her unnecessary problems to report her or make an official complaint.

Did she even show political bias? What she said about Trump was quite factual.

YANBU

I have been a bit at some of the political opinions of teachers at my DS' school that he has been merrily parotting back to me. They are not necessarily view points I disagree with FWIW but I find it highly innapropriate that teachers at the school would seek to impress political opinions in this way. I am happy for kids to discuss politics and raise questions, but I do not want my kids influenced in this way. I am trying to teach my kids to not be influenced by opinion and to seek out unbiased info wherever possible and not even be infouenced by my views.

Influenced

well shes right