A teacher in a London primary school has spoken of children as young as nine repeating US president Donald Trump’s comment condoning sexual assault.

The revelation came at the NUT union’s annual conference in Cardiff, where teachers warned about an upsurge in bigoted behaviour following the vote for Britain to leave the European Union and the election of Mr Trump.

Influential words

Shannon Davis, an East London teacher who is originally from America, told the conference she had witnessed “a change in the minds of our youth” and “seen first-hand nine and 10 year old children using language I know they cannot believe or fully understand”.

She said: “A few months ago I was on the playground doing playground duty and heard a Year 5 boy shout ‘go grab her by the P-U-S-S-Y’.”

Ms Davis spelled out the word “for conference decorum”, but said the boy “of course... did not”.

“I said ‘young man where did you hear that from?’ He said ‘well Ms Davis, I heard it from your president, Donald Trump’.” 

During the US presidential campaign, a video surfaced from 2005 in which Mr Trump brags about trying to grope and kiss women. He is heard saying, “Grab them by the pussy. You can do anything.”

Ms Davis said:“How can we reprimand a child for using language they repeatedly hear in the news and see all over social media?”

She claimed misogynist and racist language was “being normalised as our little sponges are absorbing and regurgitating it”.

She said she was aware of children telling their Muslim peers “they should be deported”, and their Polish peers they do not “belong in the UK anymore”.

“Children should not be rolling up their jumpers and throwing them at Muslim peers, pretending that their uniform is explosive, and yet this has happened,” she said.

Criticism over invite

The NUT passed a motion noting a “rise in racist attacks and abuse” following the Brexit vote, which also stated that children are experiencing “real fears” following the election of Mr Trump.

Robert Newham, a delegate from Newham, condemned prime minister Theresa May’s decision to invite the US president on a state visit to Britain.

He said the visit would “strike fear and concern into ethnic minority kids and students”.

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