Wisconsin School Bans Miley Cyrus & Dolly Parton Song ‘Rainbowland’

Administrators at Heyer Elementary School in Waukesha, Wisconsin, banned their first-grade class from performing their rendition of Miley Cyrus’s “Rainbowland” duet with Dolly Parton at their spring concert because it conflicted with their school board policy on controversial issues in the classroom.

Melissa Tempel, a teacher at the school, spoke out against the ban by sharing a tweet saying that her “first graders were so excited to sing Rainbowland for our spring concert but it has been vetoed by our administration.”

Tempel had selected the song after another faculty member had recommended it, “because it’s such a great song with a positive message,” she said in an interview on Tuesday. The school, however, found that the song “could be deemed controversial” and was forbidden within one day of her students’ learning the “Rainbowland.” Tempel explained that the ban had confused her students, saying that they “were asking, ‘Why can’t we sing it?’” because they “really liked” the song.

Parents in the district believe the school pulled the song from the lineup because it promotes LGBTQ acceptance and symbolizes rainbows. “Wouldn’t it be nice to live in paradise, where we’re free to be exactly who we are,” the lyrics read. “Living in a Rainbowland, where you and I go hand in hand. Oh, I’d be lying if I said this was fine, all the hurt and the hate going on here.”

While Cyrus has not directly reacted to the banning of “Rainbowland,” her Happy Hippie Foundation honored the Wisconsin first graders and later announced that they are making a donation to Pride and Less Prejudice, an organization that provides “LGBTQ-inclusive books to Pre-K through 3rd grade classrooms to help students and teachers ‘Read out loud, read out proud!’”