Disney Vs. DeSantis Goes Directly To Classroom With Florida Teacher Under Investigation

An ongoing battle between the governor of Florida and a leading media company continues to be a top storyline ahead of the 2024 election. Here’s a look at the latest development in the battle between The Walt Disney Company DIS and Ron DeSantis.

What Happened: Since Disney vocally opposed the Parental Rights in Education Act law in Florida, the company has received backlash from DeSantis.

The governor, who is considered a potential front-runner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, has spoken often against Disney since the company went public with remarks. DeSantis has worked on changing governing bodies that control the area of Florida where the Disney World theme park is located.

While it’s not directly tied to DeSantis or Disney, a news story about a Florida teacher could amplify the very public battle between the two parties.

A Florida teacher faces an investigation by the Florida Department of Education after showing a recent Disney animated film to her students, one that comes with a PG rating, as reported by Deadline.

Jenna Barbee, a first-year teacher at Hernando County’s Winding Waters K-8 school, took the story to TikTok to share details.

“I am the teacher that’s under investigation with the Florida Department of Education for indoctrination for showing a Disney movie,” Barbee says in the video.

The teacher said the goal of showing the movie was to give students a “brain break” after completing standardized testing.

Students in the class had signed permission slips approving the showing of PG movies “with no objections to specific content,” according to the teacher.

The movie in question is “Strange World,” which was the first Disney animated movie to feature a gay teen character with the protagonist, Ethan Clade.

“The reason I was turned in is because one of the split students was a school board member’s daughter. That school board member is currently on a rampage to get rid of every form of representation out of our schools.”

The movie was selected by Barbee as it relates to Earth science and ecosystems, a curriculum the students had been learning, according to the teacher.

“My thought process was, what a better way to showcase all these standards along with huge lessons of overcoming differences, spreading kindness, communication and chasing your dreams.”

Related Link: Ron Desantis May Have Donald Ducked It Up, Experts Weigh In On Florida's Fight Against Disney

Why It’s Important: Barbee said she has met with the school board member in question and understands the perspective of some parents not wanting a film like that to be shown.

“I understand my lesson,” Barbee said she told the school board member.

School board member Shannon Rodriguez called Barbee out at a public school board meeting for breaking a school policy, as shared by CNN. 

“It is not a teacher’s job to impose their beliefs upon a child: religious, sexual orientation, gender identity, any of the above,” Rodriguez said. “As a leader in this community, I’m not going to stand by and allow this minority to infiltrate our schools.”

Barbee remains under investigation over “allegations that you engaged in inappropriate conduct,” according to CNN. The showing of the movie could violate the Parental Rights in Education Act, as instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity is banned in classrooms.

A letter sent to parents said the movie would not be shown in the future and highlighted that a portion of the movie saw a male character having feelings for another male character, but it was “not the main plot of the movie.”

Barbee could be suspended or lose her teaching license if she's found to have violated the Parental Rights in Education Act, commonly known as the “Don’t Say Gay Bill.”

“I don’t want them to terminate me right now,” she said.

“Strange World” was released in 2022 and underwhelmed at theaters, with a domestic box office of $38.0 million and a total worldwide box office of $73.6 million. Due to the content in the film, “Strange World” was blocked from being shown in certain territories, similar to “Lightyear,” which also featured LGBTQ+ themes.

 

The performance of both animated films has disappointed and raised concerns among shareholders and analysts regarding Disney's content direction.

As the battle between DeSantis and Disney wages on, the media conglomerate has sought to get around new rules and regulations with a clause that was passed prior to the governor placing his own officials on the governing board.

DeSantis has now sought to prevent the changes from taking place, and has even gone as far as saying he could sell land near Disney World or place a prison near the popular theme park.

Read Next: NBA Hall Of Famer Moves Family Out Of Florida, Citing Unwelcoming Climate Under Governor DeSantis 

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