The truth about parental brainwashing – and why many of us are guilty of it
The truth about parental brainwashing – and why many of us are guilty of it
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As Elon Musk dubs his four-year-old son X Æ A-12 an ‘enthusiastic Trump supporter’, Charlotte Cripps asks why some parents insist on pushing their own ideologies onto their young children – whether it’s their sociopolitical stances or their taste in clothes.
![[According to Elon Musk, his four-year-old son X Æ A-12 is ‘a very enthusiastic [Trump] supporter’]](https://static.independent.co.uk/2025/01/28/10/GettyImages-2188411433.jpg)
Donald Trump’s youngest supporter? Elon Musk’s four-year-old X Æ A-12, apparently. The Tesla founder’s son, whose name is pronounced “ex-ash-ay-12” and who goes by “X” for short, has become a regular on the Trump/Musk circuit of late: carried on his dad’s shoulders during excursions to Capitol Hill to discuss Trump’s government efficiency initiative, DOGE; joining them both at Mar-a-Lago to celebrate New Year’s Eve, if way past the child’s bedtime.
And just last week X stole the limelight from his billionaire dad at Trump’s victory rally in Washington, DC. As the child “followed” his dad onto the main stage as if by accident, Musk proclaimed to the cheering crowds that his son is “a very enthusiastic [Trump] supporter… as you can see”. X then jumped up and down and waved his hands. X’s (alleged) political affiliations were revealed much earlier, though, with Musk posting a clip online last month in which he asked X for political advice. “What should I do?” Musk asked his son, who was strapped into his car seat. “Save America,” X replied, before adding, “help Trump!” Musk captioned the post: “This kid has great instincts.”.
Really? It’s shocking how parents use their children to look good, or to reflect their own ideologies. I’ve seen it happen so many times and it never fails to make me gasp. I remember once seeing a yummy mummy and her two-year-old daughter browsing in a designer children’s boutique in Notting Hill. The mum insisted her child had “expensive taste”, looking at me knowingly as said child threw different articles of clothing onto the shop floor – ones she “did like” and ones she “didn’t like”. But the child could barely string a sentence together, let alone understand price tags. I’m sure she’d have done the same in Poundland.
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