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 at Winding Waters K-8 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.
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"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 in a TikTok video. "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.
In response to a request from NBC News for comments on Barbee’s allegations, a spokesperson for the Education Department outlined its process for investigating alleged teacher misconduct, but would not comment on the allegations against Barbee specifically.
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“I understand that the individual in question has discussed her case publicly,” the spokesperson, Cassandra Palelis, wrote in an email. “However, we will not allow politics and media pressure to dictate our process.”
Karen Jordan, the public information officer for Winding Waters K-8, said in an email that “the matter is currently under investigation.” Jordan also shared an email that school officials sent to parents earlier this month saying that the film will not be shown to students in the future.
Florida's Parental Rights in Education law, dubbed "Don't Say Gay" by critics, bans classroom instruction about sexual orientation and gender identity.
