(Dmytro “Henry” Aleksandrov, Headline USA) A Florida sixth-grade teacher was criticized and suspended from his job after posting TikTok videos of white students bowing to their black classmates and of himself mocking the state’s “Stop Woke Act” by portraying conservatives as tyrannical censors, even though the act is meant to remove Critical Race Theory and other discriminatory lessons from public schools.
Ethan Hooper, a teacher at Howard Middle School in Orlando, was heavily criticized for his leftist ideology, anti-white sentiments and using children as political props, according to the Daily Wire.
“If one of the teachers was using my kid for political gain, that would upset me,” one father said. “What if I don’t believe in that, and, you know, that’s not what I’m teaching my kid?”
Another person was more direct about the teacher’s actions.
“He needs to lose his job now,” the person said. “He can take his issues to adults in the system. Instead, he used children he’s supposed to be caring for on a personal social media account”
Other people pointed out that teachers are not supposed to spend their time on social media during school hours.
“What is a teacher doing on social media during school hours, much less posting his students’ identities?”
Orange County Public Schools, Hooper’s employer, also commented on the situation by issuing a statement condemning the videos.
“I am appalled at the behavior and judgment of the teacher who posted the inappropriate videos using his students as political props,” Orange County Public Schools Superintendent Maria Vazquez said. “This is not free speech — it is the exploitation of our students for political purposes, and it will not be tolerated in our school district.”
To avoid even a bigger scandal by allowing Hopper to keep his job, a spokesperson for the school district suggested Hooper would be disciplined and put on administrative leave.
“Orange County Public Schools will not tolerate the use of our children as political pawns by anyone, including a classroom teacher,” Orange County Public Schools’ Media Manager Michael Ollendorf said.
“Any employee who creates videos or other content with students in an effort to exploit them for political purposes will be immediately removed from the classroom, placed on administrative leave and swift action will be taken to terminate employment.”
