NBC 6- A Florida teacher claims she’s being investigated by the state’s department of education for showing her class a Disney movie with a gay character.
Jenna Barbee, a fifth-grade teacher in Hernando County, said a school board member and parents reported her to the Florida Department of Education for showing students the movie “Strange World.”
The 2022 animated movie stars Jake Gyllenhaal and is Disney’s first with an openly gay character.
Barbee said the movie tied in with her “Earth Science” class and didn’t have any sexually inappropriate content.
“None of my students cared or batted an eye, they didn’t even know this was a big deal until the board member and the state made it a big deal,” she said. “They’re using it against me saying they’re protecting the children and it’s for their safety, but what is this actually showing them.”
Barbee said every student in her class had a signed parent permission slip that said PG movies were allowed.
Florida’s Parental Rights in Education law, dubbed “Don’t Say Gay” by critics, bans classroom instruction about sexual orientation and gender identity.
