She stated that a teacher in Florida is the subject of an investigation by the state Department of Education after showing her students a Disney movie with a gay character in the classroom.


Jenna Barbee, a 5th grade educator at Winding Waters School in Hernando District, protected her choice to play the film "Unusual World" in a video explanation on TikTok.


Barbee stated that she showed the PG-13 film starring Jake Gyllenhaal to provide students with a break following exams.


She asserted that all of her students had permission slips for PG films signed by their parents. However, the inclusion of an LGBTQ character in the movie later sparked objections from parents and school board members.


The educator claimed that Barbee was reported to the Department of Education for indoctrination by the member of the school board, Shannon Rodriguez, who was identified by the Tallahassee Democrat.                                            Barbee is currently being scrutinized for likely infringement of Conservative Gov. Ron DeSantis' purported "Don't say gay" regulation which boycotts lessons about orientation and sexual personality to understudies in Florida government funded schools.


Yet, the educator said she showed the film since it consolidated illustrations about geology and biological systems that her understudies were finding out about in the educational plan. Additionally, she stated that the film imparts social and emotional lessons such as "overcoming differences, spreading kindness, communication, and chasing your dreams."         Is there a LGBTQ character in the movie? Absolutely. Is that why I demonstrated it? Barbee said, "No."


“I have a lot of fifth-grade students who have come to me this year long before we showed this movie and have talked about how they are also a part of this community. It doesn't bother me, so I said, OK, that's awesome, you do it. Accepting everything is all that matters. That is my practice.


As a minor subplot, the animated film features a gay protagonist named Ethan Clade who has a crush on another male character.


Barbee said Rodriguez — an evident individual from the conservative gathering Mothers for Freedom — has plotted a "frenzy to dispose of each and every type of portrayal out of our schools" as an educational committee part.


                          According to a local publication, Rodriguez stated at a school board meeting last week that "it is not a teacher's job to impose their beliefs upon a child." Allowing films of this kind helps teachers open the door to conversations that shouldn't take place in our classroom.

However, Barbee claims that her students did not consider the gay character until the investigation began and each student was questioned individually by state investigators.


"Do you know the injury that will cause to a portion of my understudies?" Barbee said. " An investigator is now permitted to visit and question some of them because they are just getting used to me and can barely communicate with me. Are you serious? What is it displaying to them?”