ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The movie detailing Ruby Bridges' true journey integrating her elementary school is now at the center of another media complaint in Pinellas County.
In 1960, Ruby Bridges, a 6-year-old first grader, integrated her school, William Frantz Elementary, in New Orleans. It was an ordeal met with hatred and vitriol.
A North Shore Elementary School teacher decided to show the movie to a class of second-graders. Per district policy, the teacher consulted the school principal about showing the movie.
Two weeks before the kids were set to watch the movie, permission slips went out, the standard for any PG-rated movie.
According to Pinellas County School District, the movie “Ruby Bridges” was shown to approximately 60 second-grade students at North Shore Elementary on March 2, 2023. Two parents decided to opt out of allowing their children to watch the movie.
As Pinellas County School Board member Eileen Long explained, one parent took it a step further.
"The one parent who opted out has put in a request to have the movie no longer shown. She feels it's not appropriate," she said.
ABC Action News retained a copy of the complaint. The parent's name is redacted, but the brief answers outline why that parent felt drawn to challenge the movie.
Scenes in the movie depict Bridges, a Black child, walking into school as white people surround her and shout racial slurs.
In the complaint, the parent said the movie was brought to their attention via the permission slip. The parent claims they watched the first 50 minutes of the movie.
The complaint form then asks, "To what material do you object? (Please be specific. Cite pages, film sequence, etc.)" The parent cited the racial slurs shouted in the scene.
Another question: "What do you feel might be the result of a student using this material?" To which the parent answered: "Teaching them racial slur, how they are different and white people hate Black people."
Ruby Bridges parent complaint by ABC Action News on Scribd
We reached out to Citizens Defending Freedom, an organization focused on working with parents and citizens that challenge material inside schools.
Debbie Hunt, the Education Director for the Hillsborough County Chapter of Citizens Defending Freedom, believes any concern from a parent is a valid concern and should be treated as such.
"There's many different opinions about literature and movies and other information that's out there. All need to be respected. Each may violate something different," she said.
Earlier this week, Hillsborough County School Board voted to remove the book, "This Book is Gay," from every middle school in the county. While the result was in her favor, Hunt said the process needs reworking.
"Here in Hillsborough County, 'This Book is Gay' took eight and a half months from the first time the board heard about the book and the concerns from parents as well as residents in Hillsborough County — eight and a half months for it to go from start to finish. Not reasonable, and especially as many books as are out there that are currently in the schools that have language in there that's obscene and not suitable for the age groups that it's in the library," she said.
The group's main focus is on monitoring what is inside Florida schools.
"It's not about banning the books. Because they can they, they and their parents can access the books in the public library. They can buy them in the bookstores if that's what they want to do if that's what they want to be read," she said. "However, when parents send their kids to schools, they have a reasonable expectation that the information in the library is suitable to the age of their child."
In the case of the "Ruby Bridges" movie, the parent who filed the complaint said the content in the movie is more suitable for an eighth grader.
However, board member Long said other parents in the class are throwing their support behind the teacher.
"This teacher is excellent. The parents are telling me she walked the kids through the whole thing," Long said. "According to other parents, because I've been receiving a lot of emails, is that the way she explained what was going on, the children started to understand that not everyone has had an easy life. She wanted the children to see that real history. We can't change the past."
The challenges of books and even movies are becoming more common in Florida. The fine details vary by school district. However, throughout the state, anyone can challenge any idea or theme in a book or movie. Take Pinellas County, for instance. The complaint form for the county asks questions such as:
- To what in the material do you object? (Please be specific. Cite pages, film sequence, etc.)
- What do you believe is the theme or purpose of this material?
- What do you feel might be the result of a student using this material?
- For what age group would you recommend this material?
- In your opinion, is there anything of value in this material?
Those are all questions the North Shore Elementary parent answered. This particular challenge is something Toni Ann Johnson, the movie's screenwriter, feels is unfortunate.
"I think it's bad one parent had the ability to stop other children from seeing the film for the rest of the year. I think it's an overreaction but it's not surprising. I think it's part of the Stop Woke Act and the parent's rights movement, which gives parents, unfortunately, that power," she said.
Johnson said since 1998, the Disney movie has become a staple in classrooms throughout the country.
"If a 6-year-old is old enough to be called the N-word and has to understand what that means. Then second graders are old enough to learn what it means," she said.
Her worry is that the parent of one child is causing a rift for countless others.
"One parent should not have the right to, you know, just say, I don't think this is right. And then everybody has to abide by that," she said. "It's unfair, and it's unnecessary. If one child wants doesn't want to watch the film, or one parent doesn't want their kids to watch the film. That's fine. Don't watch it. But why are you imposing that on the entire school?"
She fears this latest trend could lead to an erasure of history.
"If they don't get that education and they get out of school, then there they can say, well, I didn't understand that racism existed. Of course, it exists. It exists in their school. And this film helps teachers teach the beginnings of the civil rights movement and where race was at that time and how it affected black children."
The complainant said they only watched the first 50 minutes of the movie. In that span, they became worried about the perception that white people hate Black people.
"I heard in the opening, parents are saying that there was nothing in it aside from the bad white people. That is absolutely not true. Watch the film. All the white people are not bad. The film does highlight Black humanity, which a lot of films don't do. I didn't have any films like that as a child. There were no films that centered on a young black girl. This film, it has been around for 25 years. It has worked for 25 years and it can continue to work," she added.
Raegan Miller serves as the Director of Development of Finance for the Florida Freedom to Read Project. It launched shortly after the first couple of books were challenged in the state.
"Our purpose is to make sure that all of our students have access to information," she explained.
Finding out the "Ruby Bridges" movie was under review shocked Miller.
"I actually cried when I first heard the news," she said.
Miller said it was especially shocking considering she had just recently visited a museum with a Ruby Bridges exhibit.
"I remember they have a very large cardboard cut out of Ruby Bridges or an image of her. And when you look at her and look at that child's face, and how beautiful she is, and what she had to endure. It breaks my heart today," she said.
Miller believes the movie is suitable for second graders.
"She based that on what she was comfortable with and her lived experience. It's very unfair that she can speak for all of us," Miller said.
Board member Long said right now, the movie is shelved as it moves through the review cycle.
"That process doesn't mean that Pinellas County is going to pull it from all schools. It is pulled for this year off of North Shores' list. But the most important thing to remember is, the teacher did exactly what she was supposed to," she said.
There's no direct timeline for when the school district will issue a final decision on the movie.
ABC Action News reached out to the governor's office. Their team told us to reach out to the school board and the Department of Education. The Department of Education never responded.
We also reached out to Ruby Bridges. We have not received a response from her either.
The movie is still allowed in every other school in the district. As it awaits review, it's not allowed to be shown inside North Shore.
