TEACHER FIRED AFTER SHOWING ‘MILK’ TO CLASS

A school teacher in Mexico has been fired after she screened part of the 2008 Oscar-winning gay-themed film Milk to her pupils, reports news website Proceso.

Cecilia Hernandez showed the first half hour of the film to her seven and eight grade classes, consisting of children between the ages of 12 and 13.

Hernandez, a civics teacher at Lomas Hill School in Cuajimalpa, was afterwards called to the principal’s office, escorted by two security guards and summarily fired.

In an e-mail to the sacked teacher, Principal Annette Muench de Labardini said the “lack of tact and the disrespect you have shown students today is unforgiveable” and claimed that Hernandez had not informed her superiors that she planned to show the film.

Hernandez has insisted that she included the screening of Milk in her lesson plans for the class on sexual orientation and human rights, and that these were approved.

Although she doesn’t want her job back, Hernandez has filed a complaint with the national discrimination board.

Starring Sean Penn, who won an Academy Award for his portrayal of the title role, the acclaimed Milk tells the story of Harvey Milk, the first openly gay man to hold public office in the United States. The film also won an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay.