A Florida teacher was fired after posting a video that contributed to what Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis called "a fake narrative" about the alleged banning of books in state schools.
Brian Covey, a parent and substitute teacher at a Duval County middle school, recorded video of empty school library shelves that went viral, earning more than 13 million views. He was fired for the video's "misrepresentation."
DeSantis last week blamed teachers unions for manufacturing outcries over his state's education legislation.
Bryan Griffin, DeSantis' press secretary, tweeted a statement that said the removal of books from school shelves was not ordered by the state.
"There has been no state instruction to empty libraries or cover up classroom books. However, we ARE taking a stand against pornography and sexual material in the classroom," Griffin said in the statement.
During a press conference last week, DeSantis was asked about the Stop WOKE law forcing Duval County Public Schools to remove a book about Puerto Rican baseball star Roberto Clemente because it mentioned racism.
"That's politics, though, to be honest with you," DeSantis said. "Come on. Roberto Clemente? I mean, seriously. That's politics. I think the school unions are involved with this. You guys can [Freedom of Information Act] get some of these communications. I guarantee you you'll find some of that with the people that are doing it. So that's a joke, OK?"
Covey, who worked at Mandarin Middle School, was fired a day after DeSantis' remarks.
"In discussion between the district and ESS regarding this individual's misrepresentation of the books available to students in the school's library and the disruption this misrepresentation has caused, it was determined that he had violated social media and cell phone policies of his employer," a Duval County Public Schools representative told First Coast News.
"Therefore, ESS determined these policy violations made it necessary to part ways with this individual."
ESS is a staffing company hired by Duval County to fill substitute teaching roles.
DeSantis, considered a potential candidate for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, signed the Stop WOKE Act into law in April. It prevents school districts from teaching critical race theory.
DeSantis also has targeted the removal of books from elementary and middle schools that talk explicitly about sex.
The state has instructed school districts to "err on the side of caution" to make sure they're complying with new Florida laws regarding education books and materials.
"We did direct teachers to temporarily reduce their classroom library collections to titles that were previously approved while waiting for media specialists to curate a more expansive list of approved titles," DCPS Superintendent Diana Greene wrote Thursday in a letter to district employees, First Coast News reported. "However, at no time should a classroom have been without reading resources."
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