A fifth-grade teacher is under state scrutiny for showing an animated Disney movie starring a gay character to her students — then defending the decision in a video statement posted on social media.
Jenna Barbee, a first-year teacher in Florida’s public school system, was reported to the school board by one of her students’ mothers — and now claims state investigators investigating the violation are traumatizing her other students.
The film in question is 2022’s Strange World, an animated film released in the fall to lukewarm reviews. Featuring a cast that includes Jake Gyllenhaal, the movie cost just under $320 million to make, but made back less than half of that, at $120 million.
Only $35 million of that came from other countries, with Disney refraining from airing the PG movie in the Middle East, China, Indonesia, Turkey, Nigeria and Uganda due to its LGBTQ storyline – with the main character openly gay.
In a passionate six-minute game TikTok On Sunday, Barbee revealed how she is being investigated by Florida’s Department of Education over her decision, while insisting the film fell within state curriculum boundaries.
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Jenna Barbee, a first-year teacher in Florida’s public school system, was reported for broadcasting the film by one of her students’ mothers — and now claims state detectives investigating the violation are traumatizing her other students
The movie in question is 2022’s Strange World, an animated film with a cast that includes Jake Gyllenhaal and a gay main character with a male love interest
Is a character in the movie LGBTQ? Absolutely,” Barbee said of the main character, played by gay comedian Jaboukie Young-White, whose arc consists of a crush on another male character, voiced by an openly gay actor.
‘Is that why I showed it? No.’
The rookie instructor whose class consists of children aged 10 and 11 went on to explain her views on the matter, saying that the sexual orientation of the film’s central figure had nothing to do with her choice.
“I have a lot of fifth grade students who have come to me this year, long before this movie was shown, to talk about how they are part of [the LGBTQ] community,” she explained. ‘I do not care.’
“So I just said, OK, great, I’m not pushing anything, I’m just accepting,” Barbee continued, before revealing how she believed district theories got behind closed doors at her discretion. “That’s what I do.”
She further claimed that as part of the Sunshine State-led investigation, her students were now individually escorted out of class to be questioned by DOE officials — measures she denounced as not only crass but directly harmful, leaving the preteen students caused permanent damage. .
“Do you know the trauma some of my students will cause?” Barbee asked in the viral video statement, which has been viewed millions of times and garnered nearly 500,000 likes.
“Some of them can barely come and have a conversation with me and are just comfortable with me,” she claimed. ‘And now a detective may come and question them. Are you joking? What does that show them?’
Barbee continued her reasoning in choosing the polarizing image, arguing that it contained topics relevant to earth science and that it was just a treat for the youngsters after a tough few weeks of exams.
She also cited that she required all children to bring back parental consent forms to watch PG movies – despite not informing parents about the content of the movie in particular.
Her goal, she said, was to “spread the message of kindness, positivity and compassion to all.”
“That is key to our children’s safety,” she added.
Released in late fall, the animated movie – which follows a group of explorers who go on an adventure to find an exotic plant – was a flop for the most part and was panned as the last “in a year of disasters awakened.” for Disney
Since confirmed by state officials, the investigation was launched to determine whether the film and its content violate Ron DeSantis’ “Don’t say gay” law, which prohibits teaching about gender and sexual identity to high school students. The governor signed the bill into law in March last year
The rookie instructor, whose class includes children ages 10 and 11, is now under investigation and said on Sunday that the sexual orientation of the film’s central figure had nothing to do with her decision to screen the film, and that it was simply was a reward for students who took a few hard lessons. weeks of testing
Since confirmed by state officials, the investigation was launched to determine whether the film and its content violate Ron DeSantis’ “Don’t Say Gay” law, which prohibits teaching about gender and sexual identity to students of public schools. schools under a certain age.
Officially called the Parental Rights in Education Act, the relatively new piece of legislation also served as the inflammatory factor for Disney’s ongoing feud with Florida firebrand DeSantis, after the company publicly opposed it when it was drafted.
The decision sparked a rift between the Republican and the Bob Iger-led company, which have engaged in several maneuvers in recent months following DeSantis’ decision to scrap Disney’s self-governing privileges at the Orlando park earlier this year.
In response, Disney is now suing DeSantis in federal court, alleging that he violated the company’s freedom of speech during its forcible takeover of the Disney-affiliated Reedy Creek Improvement District, and has since launched a “targeted campaign of government retaliation” against the Burbank led. established company.
Meanwhile, DeSantis recently dismissed the lawsuit as “political,” claiming that the company had “crossed a line in its support of indoctrinating very young schoolchildren into awakened gender identity politics.”