Teacher ‘likened to terrorist’ after showing Trump videos to students

A teacher at an English school has been accused of posing a risk to children and cited the Government’s counter-terrorism program after showing Donald Trump videos in a US politics class.

The teacher, in his 50s, told The Telegraph he was “likened to a terrorist” after showing videos, including one from Mr Trump’s inauguration, to A-level students.

Henley College, a sixth-form school in Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, which has more than 2,000 students, reported the political lecturer to the local child protection authority, which said Prevent the government’s anti-terrorism programIt was a “priority”.

The teacher was accused of causing “emotional harm” to his A-level students, aged 17 and 18. In a document reviewed by The Telegraph, local authorities responsible for protecting children claimed that showing the videos could constitute a “hate crime”.

The extraordinary allegations prompted the teacher, who first qualified in the mid-1990s, to initiate a complaints procedure against the university. A negotiated deal gave him a return of £2,000 after he was effectively forced to resign from his £44,000-a-year role.

Her case is the latest in which child protection laws have been used to ban adults, The Telegraph has revealed. Allegedly right-wing Insights from working with children.

The Free Speech League believes laws intended to protect children from murderers and rapists are being wrongly used to go after adults with outdated ideas. It said the teacher’s case was a clear example of child protection protocols being “weaponised to silence someone for political reasons”.

The teacher, who wished to remain anonymous, said: “They compared me to a terrorist. It was completely shocking. It’s dystopian, like something out of George Orwell’s novel.”

Documents seen by The Telegraph show how Henley College began investigations in January 2025 following complaints made by two of the lecturer’s students. He was accused of teaching “biased” and “off-topic.”

The university said in an official email dated Jan. 28 that he allegedly “showed your students videos of Donald Trump, his campaign, his propaganda, and other videos unrelated to what is being taught.”

The university later claimed that one of the videos “made one of the students quite uncomfortable.”

The teacher said: “It was terrible; it was mind-blowing. We were discussing the US election, Trump had just won, and I showed some videos from Trump’s campaign. Then I was accused of bias. One of the students said he was emotionally disturbed and claimed he was having nightmares.”

Asked if he was a far-right extremist, the teacher, a Catholic who admitted to being a Republican supporter but was adamant his views were mainstream, said: “I’m not an extremist.”

He accused the university of being “totally Left-biased” and added: “They don’t tolerate anything to do with Donald Trump.”

The College referred the case to the Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO), the authority responsible for investigating safeguarding concerns.

The LADO report dated 22 May said the teacher’s views “could be perceived as radical” and Henley College “should complete its Prevent guidance”.

The statement continued: “There are concerns that this behavior may harm the child, that views that may constitute a hate crime may constitute a crime, and that supporting views may cause radicalization.”

Prevent is the Government’s strategy to combat terrorism by intervening where? concerns about radicalization They are grown in schools and other places.

Students claimed teaching was ‘biased and off-topic’

The teacher said: “I was completely insulted by the suggestion that I was a danger to children. It affected my mental health. I had to see a counsellor. It damaged my physical health. It was absolutely appalling. It really hit me hard.”

In April he received an official letter informing him that he had been accused of abuse of power. The alleged offense was to cause “emotional harm to your students by sharing inappropriate content (especially video) with them and your lack of balance in presenting your political views, with an emphasis on right-wing, potentially extremist views.”

The letter included allegations from students that “your teacher is biased and off-topic to the extent that it distracts from what students need to learn.”

Among the videos was a music video called Daddy’s Home, produced by. Roseanne BarrUS comedian and Trump supporter and Canadian artist Tom MacDonald, nicknamed the Maga Rapper. The video has been viewed 7.8 million times on YouTube and was recommended to the teacher by one of his students.

The teacher remains baffled that the video, with Maga fans cheering in the background, could cause a student “emotionally distressed”.

He says he became convinced he was targeted by a group of students after taking his politics class in early September 2024. He had taught business studies at the university last year and was praised for his work, but switched to politics due to staff shortages.

The teacher, who is now working as a supply teacher while looking for a full-time role, has extensive family ties to the US but insists his Republican views are not extreme, pointing out that Mr Trump won the electoral college convincingly and the popular vote.

He said he teaches students about politics and propaganda and also shows them videos of Kamala Harris. He had shown about five Trump-related videos before the complaint was filed.

In April 2025 he wrote: US vice president JD VanceHe complains that it is “a shocking example of the communist-style silencing of thoughts and narratives that oppose those imposed by the intolerant far Left,” adding: “My career is at risk from this shocking mistreatment at the hands of clearly one-sided individuals with a hatred of the US Republican party and an agenda to silence anyone who disagrees or has different perspectives and views.” He has no idea whether the letter reached Mr. Vance.

‘She was bullied and harassed’

contacted him Free Expression Alliance We thank (FSU) for its assistance in dealing with the alleged “misconduct” and ongoing disciplinary investigation. Finally received a written warning

FSU, which provides legal aid to members, claimed in his defense that he was the victim of “bullying and harassment” and was also accused of showing a “genocide video” to children. It was noted that the video is part of a series of educational materials provided by the Holocaust Education Foundation.

The FSU’s governor, the Conservative Party’s Lord Young, said: “The USA is our closest ally and Donald Trump is its democratically elected leader. Showing one of his election adverts to a class of political students, especially one alongside Kamala Harris’s, does not make you a risk to children.”

“There is a clear example of protection protocols being used as weapons to silence someone for political reasons.”

Henley College, which attracts students from Oxfordshire, Berkshire and Buckinghamshire, said: “Henley College does not comment on individual allegations or ongoing investigations.

“We are committed to protecting the welfare of all our students and staff and following legal safeguarding procedures in line with Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025.

“Allegations are handled with due care in accordance with legal guidance and with appropriate support provided to all involved.”