Florida Teacher Under Investigation for Showing Students Disney Movie with a Gay Character
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The 2022 animated film Strange World features several dynamic characters, including an openly gay teenage boy whose sexuality is embraced by his family
A Florida teacher is under investigation by the state's Department of Education after showing her classroom the PG-rated, animated Disney film Strange World, which features a gay character.
Jenna Barbee, a fifth-grade teacher in Florida's Hernando County School District, told NPR that one of her student's mothers filed a complaint following her showing of the 2022 film.
According to its official synopsis, the film is about a "legendary family of explorers, the Clades, as they attempt to navigate an uncharted, treacherous land alongside a motley crew that includes a mischievous blob, a three-legged dog and a slew of ravenous creatures."
The movie features Disney's first-ever openly gay character, a 16-year-old member of the Clade family voiced by comedian Jaboukie Young-White, who mentions early on in the film that he has a crush on another male character but whose sexuality is not the focal point of the plot.
Speaking to NPR, Barbee said the movie "talks about love to all things, and that's literally what this movie represents. I find it interesting that now I'm getting in trouble for a similar topic."
The Hernando County School District did not immediately respond to a request for comment from PEOPLE, but told NPR that an investigation is now ongoing.
The district added that it sent parents of the students who saw the film letters reading, in part: "While not the main plot of the movie, parts of the story involves a male character having and expressing feelings for another male character. In the future, this movie will not be shown."
The film, the district adds, cannot be shown as it may violate Florida's "Parental Bill of Rights," also known as the "Don't Say Gay" bill, which was signed into law by Gov. Ron DeSantis last March.
The measure initially blocked the discussion of certain LGBTQ topics in the third grade or younger or "in a manner that is not age appropriate or developmentally appropriate for students in accordance with state standards." In March 2023, however, DeSantis moved to expand the bill to cover grades 4 through 12 as well.
The original bill ignited a feud between DeSantis and Disney World when the company expressed opposition to the polarizing measure.
The bill "should never have passed and should never have been signed into law," the Walt Disney Company said in a March 2022 statement. "Our goal as a company is for this law to be repealed by the Legislature or struck down in the courts, and we remain committed to supporting the national and state organizations working to achieve that."
The governor responded, attacking Disney as "woke" and saying in a fundraising email that the iconic company "lost any moral authority to tell you what to do."
Related:Amid Rumored Presidential Bid, Ron DeSantis Remains Focused on Disney World
But DeSantis took his fight with the company a step further when he urged state lawmakers to consider ending a deal between Disney and Florida that, since 1967, has given it special privileges, including tax exemptions and certain autonomies like providing its own fire, police and other services such as building and maintaining roads.
In recent months, DeSantis has also made public remarks about the company, such as musing about building a private prison next to Disney World, opening a competing theme park near the property, or raising the company's taxes and imposing harsher restrictions on theme park rides.
Last month, Disney — the state's largest private employer and the owner of its top tourist attraction — announced it was suing DeSantis who it claimed, had "weaponized government power against Disney in retaliation for expressing a political viewpoint unpopular with certain State officials."
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