First-grade teacher Melissa Tempel tweeted, “When will it end?” following the Waukesha, Wisconsin, school board’s decision to forbid music with rainbow themes from an upcoming concert.
An outraged Wisconsin first-grade teacher took to the internet to voice her outrage after several songs with a rainbow theme were removed from her students’ spring musical. Miley Cyrus and Dolly Parton’s “Rainbowland” and the Muppets’ “Rainbow Connection” were both banned by the Waukesha County Board of Education, according to Heyer Elementary dual language teacher Melissa Tempel.
“My first-grade students were eager to perform “Rainbowland” in our spring musical, but our administration denied their request. Tempel tweeted, “When will it be over? Supt. An inquiry for comments was not promptly answered by James Sebert of the Waukesha School District.
The following lyrics from their 2017 collaboration, which were included on Cyrus’ sixth studio album Younger Now, were also made available by Tempel: “Living in a Rainbowland / The skies are blue, and everything is grand / Wouldn’t it be nice to live in paradise / Where we’re free to be exactly who we are.”.
https://twitter.com/melissatempel/status/1638324580371537927/photo/1
Our administration overrode my first-graders’ enthusiastic requests to perform Rainbowland at our spring concert. When will it be over? March 21, 2023. @waukeshaschools @DollyParton @MileyCyrus @mileyworld @gsafewi @CivilRights publicschools pic . twitter . com/8Na0nETmDw.
Let’s all dig deep inside / Brush off the fear and judgment, the song continues. ”. Because, as I promise, nobody will win, make the errors right and put an end to the conflict. Tempel was informed that Cyrus, 30, was “controversial,” but she “felt for sure” that Parton’s standing with drag queens and the LGBTQ community had something to do with the choice. However, I am powerless to stop my students from singing “Rainbowland.”. ”. The song is fantastic and contagious.
Tempel claims that the lifting of the “Rainbow Connection” ban was caused by emails from parents and the neighborhood organization Alliance for Education. ”. “I don’t know where I’d be,” she said without them.
This is the most recent decision by a school district administration intent on stifling diversity and denying equality to the community it serves, further alienating Waukesha in the eyes of the nation, according to Becky Gilligan of the Alliance for Education, the group “continues to advocate for our community.”. “.
According to Sarah Schindler, whose daughter attends Tempel’s class, the school board recently underwent a “conservative flip” as a result of public outcry over the COVID-19 regulations. Schindler claims that the associated policy changes “have sparked some discussion in our community.”. ”. One of these is a contentious rule forbidding teachers from holding political signs. Pronouns were also a topic of conversation with the students. Teachers may not wear rainbow-colored clothing. According to the nondiscrimination policy of the Waukesha School District, “sexual orientation” is one of the categories that are explicitly listed as being protected. According to the statement, the district “does not discriminate in its admissions, programs, activities, services, or employment” on any grounds that are illegal under federal law.
Florida’s governor then comes. H. by Ron DeSantis, who bought it. B. A short time after H. R. Following the signing of H.R. 1557, also known as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill, into law last March, many states followed suit, making it unlawful for teachers to discuss students’ sexual orientation and gender identity. According to the Human Rights Campaign, 340 pieces of anti-LGBTQ legislation were being considered in the United States as of last month.
