According to stereogum.com  last month, the Waukesha School District in Waukesha, Wisconsin prohibited first-graders from performing Miley Cyrus’s and Dolly Parton’s 2017 collaboration tune “Rainbowland” at a spring concert.

The district’s superintendent mentioned in the following statement that “the question was around whether the song was appropriate for the age and maturity level of the first-grade students.” At the time, Cyrus responded to the ban by having her Happy Hippie Foundation donate to an LGBTQ+ organization.

“We are rainbows, me and you
Every color, every hue
Let’s shine on through… TOGETHER WE CAN START LIVING IN A RAINBOWLAND.”

When our founder @mileycyrus and her fairy godmother @dollyparton wrote these words together, they meant it. pic.twitter.com/zRjTkcWttm

— Happy Hippie Foundation (@happyhippiefdn) March 29, 2023

“When our founder @mileycyrus and her fairy godmother @dollyparton wrote these words together, they meant it.

To the inspiring first grade students at Heyer Elementary, keep being YOU. We believe in our Happy Hippie heart that you’ll be the ones to brush the judgment and fear aside and make all of us more understanding and accepting.

In honor & celebration of your BRIGHT future Happy Hippie is making a donation to
@lessprejudice to help make classrooms more inclusive!”

Tempel allegedly went on Twitter last month when hearing about the ban and her thoughts about it allegedly went viral. When a different teacher allegedly had suggested “Rainbowland” must be included as part of the spring concert, Tempel allegedly played the song for her classroom.

At the time Tempel allegedly stated “It’s such a fun song and they just immediately took to it,” she said at the time. It wasn’t long after that she found out that the song had been pulled from the show.

Tempel declined to comment to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, pointing to a statement issued by the Alliance For Education In Waukesha, a group of parents and teachers who are calling for superintendent James Sebert to be investigation for discrimination of LGBTQ+ staff and students, not limited to the decision to pull “Rainbowland.”

According to a statement from Alliance of Education in Waukesha’s Facebook page, they are standing in support of Tempel.

“This Superintendent and Board began the march toward marginalization last year, and it has only served to stoke fear and sow distrust in the Waukesha Community, which has yielded a pattern of bullying against anyone who calls out the district’s bias and harassment. Now Waukesha is a national laughingstock and the blame for that falls squarely to the feet of the district’s leadership, not those who have the courage to hold them accountable, like Ms. Tempel.”