A Wisconsin school has forbidden first graders from singing
a literal Dolly Parton song.
Apparently a collaboration with Miley Cyrus, it's a song about acceptance, but
the school does not accept it.
It's just too controversial.
The song is Rainbow Land.
It celebrates acceptance and it includes lyrics like,
wouldn't it be nice to live in paradise where we're free to be exactly who we are?
Well, it might or not, might not be nice to live in paradise, but
we clearly do not right now because you can't sing it in school.
There is Miley Cyrus and Dolly Parton, I think generally considered to be two very
not controversial people particularly Dolly Parton.
And so, first graders were brainstorming songs to perform
at the spring concert at higher elementary.
One first grader's mother, Sarah Schindler said that her list included
Rainbow Land as well as What a Wonderful World by Louis Armstrong and
Kermit the Frog's Rainbow connection.
A few days later, the girl told her mother that she was not allowed to sing either
the Dolly Parton song or the literal Muppet song.
They're both too controversial and one teacher at the school says,
my first graders were so excited to sing Rainbow Land for a spring concert, but
it's been vetoed by our administration.
When will it end?
I don't know.
I want it to end.
That's all I can say, River, what do you think?
>> I mean, what a goofy, [LAUGH] what a goofy time one.
I mean, Dolly Parton is like one of the best of us honestly.
And like, what's wild to me is, she practices the principles of Christianity
more than anyone in the public sphere that I've ever experienced.
And so then to ban her song probably because it contains the word rainbow,
which is now synonymous with the queer community.
And that's the only thing I could think of it being that just simply like
if we elevate the idea of rainbow, we are saying yes or we are whatever it is.
And either they outright disagree with that or
they are afraid to do it because of the brush back from
parents who disagree with people being queer or whatever.
This is just ridiculous, these are children singing.
And so, and the rainbow connection is what 40 years old at this point and
it's all about just being friends with each other, but that's
pretty dangerous territory these days in America, we're not supposed to be friends.
The same people who will quote Martin Luther King,
on Martin Luther King Day about like,
don't judge by the con color of my skin but the context of my character,
they'll say those kind of things but then they won't sing a song about rainbows.
>> Yeah, I do have to apologize cuz now I'm looking at the actual lyrics and
I don't know, there's stuff like living in a rainbow land where you and
I go hand in hand.
I'd be lying if I said this was fine.
All the hurt and the hate going on here.
We are rainbows, me and you, every color, every hue let's
shine on through together we can start living in a rainbow land.
I am probably going to have my show pulled from the internet for
having read those lyrics because they're so divisive.
>> I'm highly offended by that.
>> I apologize.
I didn't wanna make anyone uncomfortable.
The president of the school says it could be deemed controversial in accordance with
the district's controversial issues in the classroom policy and it would be bad
enough if they were just canceling songs sung by cartoon frogs about rainbows.
But to then say it to do that and then claim that at the same time, you're
against cancel culture and you believe in small government, that is hilarious.
Unfortunately, >> Also John, very offensive,
he is a real frog.
>> He is not a cartoon frog.
>> [LAUGH] >> Kermit is the frog.
>> That he is the frog, I agree.
But I saw a Muppet babies growing up.
And so, yes, you do make a good point, apologies to Kermit.
[MUSIC]