Global Courant 2023-05-16 23:49:09
The teacher is being investigated for showing her students a film that includes a homosexual couple in its plot.
A fifth-grade teacher at a school in Hernando County, Florida (United States), denounced that the Department of Education is investigating her for “indoctrination” after showing a group of students a Disney movie that features a gay character .
The film in question is A Strange World, one of the first from the studio to have an openly gay character.
Jenna Barbee posted a video on TikTok with her disclaimer. In the statement, the teacher confirms that she is under investigation for “indoctrination for showing a Disney movie.”
Jenna Barbee shared the post on her TikTok.
Barbee was a teacher at Hernando’s school for a year until she finally resigned. “I want to turn things around, and I felt like I couldn’t from the inside. It’s too long and too much stress, and then this happened, and that sealed the deal for me that I made the right decision,” she said.
The teacher explained that she showed her students A Strange World because it related to her curriculum on earth sciences and ecosystems. She clarified that she did not do it because it is a film that includes a homosexual couple in its plot.
“All the teachers and mentors at our school told me that our method for management approval to show movies was to have a signed parental permission form for PG (Rated A and AA) movies,” Barbee explained.
A Strange World was released in 2022.
Later, the woman affirmed that she had had this permit since the beginning of the year.
What did the School District say?
The school that is investigating the teacher issued a statement on Monday in which it states, among other things, that the Disney movie will no longer be shown.
“While not the main plot of the film, parts of the story involve a male character having and expressing feelings for another male character. In the future, this film will not be shown. The school administration and Department of The district’s Professional Standards are currently reviewing the matter to see if additional corrective action is required,” the message reads.
The teacher stopped working at the school in question.
On the other hand, Barbee denounced that she was reported because one of the students who attended her class was the daughter of Shannon Rodríguez, a woman belonging to the school board.
“A school board member, an elected power official who is supposed to be nonpartisan, is allowed to present to the public that she is a Christian and that God appointed her to the board. And yet, it is indoctrination that I showed a Disney movie,” said the teacher.
And Rodríguez replied: “While Mrs. Barbee is busy taking off the light and playing the victim, the real victims are our children. At what point is there a line between nurturing and teaching?
“Allowing films like this to help teachers open a door for conversations that have no place in our classrooms,” said the student’s mother.
Although Barbee maintains that it was the woman from the school board who sued her, Rodríguez did not confirm that she was the complainant.
