(NewsReady.com) – A Wisconsin teacher has been fired after trying to include a “controversial” song in a school concert. So was the song by a misogynistic rapper or a white power skinhead group? No. It’s by Miley Cyrus and country legend Dolly Parton.
In March, the Heyer Elementary School in Waukesha, Wisconsin, planned a concert for its students. The school’s first graders decided to sing “Rainbowland” by Parton and Cyrus. The 2017 song, from Cyrus’ sixth album, is an upbeat fantasy about a world without hate and prejudice. Its lyrics are light and fluffy, including lines like “Living in a rainbowland, Where skies are blue and things are grand.” Nevertheless, Waukesha School District decided it was too controversial to feature in the concert and pulled it.
That didn’t go down well with first-grade teacher Melissa Tempel, who sent a frustrated tweet saying her students had been excited about the song and,asked, “Where will it end?” It quickly became obvious where it ended for Tempel; she was placed on leave on April 3, effectively suspending her from her job. Then, on July 12, the school board voted to fire her.
Superintendent James Sebert told reporters Tempel’s tweet had “brought negative attention” and violated three separate school policies. He insisted she wasn’t terminated for including the song in the concert — although some local parents claim the board disliked the song because it can be seen as promoting gay rights — but instead because she went public with her complaint before discussing it with the school administration. He said her tweet “resulted in considerable disruption” and that during the hearing, Tempel had “repeatedly misstated … her supervisor’s decision.”
The teacher responded to Fox News Digital’s request for a comment with a rant about the district’s “transphobic, homophobic, racist policies.” She said she will continue to raise awareness about the issue.
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