I’ve never been one to talk about politics here on my blog and I’m certainly not about to start today but certain events that have happened this year (both in the UK and the US) have led to some very challenging discussions with my children about the world around us right now and that’s something that I kind of do want to talk about.
It’s hard to know just what to talk about with our children when there are so many big changes going on in the world. I think it’s important that they have an understanding of what’s going on in on in the world but even more important that they continue to feel safe and happy enough to go about the life they should be leading as a child without the worries that we may feel as adults.
This year we’ve had Brexit to contend with which seriously shook my children’s belief in humanity with the hate that was displayed at times during the campaign. It is a hugely emotive subject and I think, as children, they found it hard to comprehend the strength of people’s convictions on both sides.
I choose to make my memory of the often hate-filled Brexit campaign the quote that Master Frugal came out with during the last week before the vote when tensions were running particularly high….
We’re all the same inside though, aren’t we Mam?
What can you say to that?
More recently, the conversations we’ve had have been centred around the US Presidential election results and Master Frugal especially has been particularly concerned about the safety of Donald Trump this week. Apparently there’s been a lot of talk among his friends that someone will at some point assassinate him, possibly at his inauguration next month!
It’s been on his mind a lot and earlier this week, he even asked me if we could watch the assassination of JFK on Youtube because a lot of his friends were talking about it. How on earth is that even allowed on Youtube??? I knew if I didn’t watch it with him that he could just go off and find a way to watch it on his own so I found the video which showed it from the least upsetting angle and watched it with him.
Don’t get me wrong, he’s not a Trump supporter (neither am I) but he’s also not a Trump hater. He doesn’t know enough facts to make a decision either way really because let’s face it, he’s 11 and a US presidential election campaign isn’t something he really needs to form a serious opinion about.
What he does know is that he doesn’t feel that anyone should be hated for their beliefs – a very simplistic view I know but he’s 11. 😉
He hates the idea that there are groups of people who aren’t treated equally because of their race, religion, sexuality or the place they were born in because in his eyes, we really are all the same. It’s something that he just can’t get his head around and makes him wonder how some people think!
I don’t disagree with him but as an adult, I know that the chances of ever living in a world where everyone is treated equally is something I’m not likely to see in my lifetime, or indeed him in his lifetime.
It’s becoming harder and harder as a parent to control what news my children see because as much as I can decide what they see at home, they leave the house and it’s no longer in my hands. I feel like I can’t protect them from the news as much as I could when they were younger when I could watch something like Children’s Newsround with them.
And should I be even bothering to try and control the news they see? The things that are happening are affecting the world that they’re growing up into so should I just let them watch it?
I’d love to hear your thoughts….
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