I apologize that this post jumps around quite a bit- it’s mostly notes I made for myself that I’ve compiled into a post- first time in years. Lack of time has me not organizing this better; but I still wanted to put this out there…
September 29th, Legend Whitaker had 2 birthday songs sung to him 3 days after his sixth birthday. The Polk County teacher at Floral Avenue Elementary School (in Bartow) filmed it; and then emailed (I’ve read the mom say texted) the video to Legend’s mom:
The mom, Desarae Prather, is furious. Instead of talking it over with the teacher in question, Kimberly Langston, the mom took to social media (Instagram and TikTok) and public school officials, calling for a written apology and for the teacher to be fired.
If you go on the Polk County Public School’s Facebook page, you can read comments on their post letting the public know they’re aware of the controversy and are in the middle of investigating.
Incidentally, another Polk County elementary teacher is under fire for hitting a student:
Certainly, no child should be struck (I don’t think there was any physical injury to the child); but I wonder what the kid was doing that warranted that sort of response from McGinn. What has her track record been and for how long, as a teacher?
Here are a few posts by parents who say Langston has been a wonderful teacher:
i think this is the mother’s TikTok account (I don’t have TikTok).
I found this one Facebook account has me confused as news articles say the mother’s name is “Desarae Prather”; and this person is posting under “Arianna Brown” (apparently a “public figure” who you can “follow”; “about” indicates the person is in Georgia, yet we know Prather and her son are in Florida); so she is either the mom using a pseudonym or some sympathetic poster is copying and pasting the mother’s posts without attribution, making it sound as though she is the mom. Here are some of her posts:
September 26th (posted a day before the incident in question at school), wishing Legend a happy birthday, with video post.
Then September 29th, 12:25pm:
im sharing this so people understand what my son experienced in his classroom. A birthday should be celebrated with kindness—not racial jokes from an adult in a position of authority.”#polkcountyfl #bartowflorida #Floralaveelementary
Going through the comments, it does appear to be the mom as family members are responding to her.
This is my email to Frederick Heid- Superintendent
Beth Nave-Regional Superintendent
Tracy Collins- Regional Superintendent
Telay Kendrick- Director of Polk County Public School Human Resources
“No child should ever have to face racism in the classroom. My son deserves respect, safety, and dignity — not hateful remarks from the very people meant to guide him. We won’t stay silent. Justice for my son.
#JusticeForMySonLEGEND #EndRacism #ProtectOurChildren
KIMBERLY LANGSTON DID NOT EMAIL ME THE VIDEO, SHE DID NOT PLACE IT ON SCHOOL APPROVED CORRESPONDENCE, KIMBERLY LANGSTON TEXT ME THE VIDEO. SHE WENT INTO MY SON SCHOOL PROFILE GOT MY NUMBER AND TEXT ME! SO YOU KNOW SHE KNEW SHE WAS DOING WRONG!!!
Polk County Public Schools why has Kimberly Langston not been placed on Administrative Leave while she is under investigation? Or is that the story you all are telling the media? Every other employee especially Black employees you all are quick to inform the public you all have placed them on Administrative Leave. Why haven’t you all done this to Kimberly Langston? Is this because she is a White woman and my child is a Black boy and you all do not see value in Black children?
Other black mothers are outraged:
Teacher’s name Kimberly LangstonSchool Floral Ave Elementary 863-534-7420School system Polk County Public Schools FLYou cannot tell me she did not know the connotation behind this song! She also said, ” you sure you’re not 60?”If we dont protect our babies who will??This is very disturbing!!!
The comments are even more off the rails.
I work with kids; and I’ve caught myself almost calling a child “monkey” or, “stop monkeying around”, due to the child in question being black. I haven’t had to think twice about it when the kids in question aren’t black. And what made me sad is being made aware of the sensitivity around associating that with someone black, due to past racism. Why? Because it means I have to treat that child differently from all the other kids who I can call monkey or any other animal without creating offense. “monkey bars”, “jungle gym”…a number of years ago I remember in the news about people wanting to change “master bedroom” because someone might be harmed over the word “master” in that phrase. It amazes me how much power words have over people.
If kids in that classroom didn’t think there was anything inherently malicious in that song, they do now. It’s the adults who rob children of their innocence and teach them what to be offended by.
I grew up a military brat and lived on and off bases around the country. And I remember that this was an alternate, silly birthday song variant that we kids sometimes sang to each other. My best friends during 4th-6th grade were two brothers who lived the next cluster over on the Air Force Academy (base housing). They were black. And I know we had parties and went to parties where this song was sung. It meant nothing. I suppose the nursery rhyme/song about 5 little monkeys can’t be taken at face value either and should be considered racist?
We will never overcome racism if 500 years from now, children are still taught to allow words to be this oppressive to them- more power over them than is warranted.
From what I’ve read, Kimberly Langston, the teacher in question, sent the video of her singing the traditional HBD song and the silly version to the mother of Legend Whitaker (Desarae Prather). News articles said by email; but I read a post that sounds like it was written by the mom herself, that she received it by text. From former or current parents, it sounds like the teacher has done this for other children as well. If she had ill-intent, why on earth would she film it and send it to the parents? The mom is the one who posted to Instagram and TikTok and instead of talking it through with the teacher, went straight to the school public officials demanding a written apology and the firing of this teacher. Whether or not the child actually felt harmed by this song, he definitely does now because of how his mother has reacted to it.
I haven’t been able to source where and when this video originally appeared or when it was filmed; but it shows Langston singing the traditional and silly version to a white child:
I wonder if the teacher had just enough judgment and good sense that it caused her to ask Legend if he wanted the silly version sung to him as well? And being early in the school year, if any other kids in her class had already had birthday songs sung to them and if she asked them if they wanted it sung; or if it was automatically sung to them if they aren’t black? Because in this video of 6 year old white 1st grader, Daniel, she launches right into the 2nd song; while in Legend’s video, she asks him for permission first. Certainly, I still wouldn’t have done it; but maybe she wanted to be inclusive if she’s been singing it for others? It would be discriminating as well if she only sung it for white kids and left out black kids. Of course, the answer is we can’t have “nice” things and she should not sing the “silly version” anymore for any of the kids. Someone will inevitably find offense.
Regardless of the teacher’s poor judgment, I’d like to know intent. Did she intend harm? Or just blissfully so non-racist and unaware, that it made her blind in predicting how offensive it may be to some adults? Especially if she’s sang it for years without a parent calling her out and questioning it, in the past.
I hope the teacher doesn’t bring watermelon treats for the class because, God forbid, should she offer it to her black students or deem it necessary to ask them permission first to ask them if it’d be okay to offer them a slice.
From the film, Madagascar:
Another post by her 3:03pm:
Polk County Public Schools why has Kimberly Langston not been placed on Administrative Leave while she is under investigation? Or is that the story you all are telling the media? Every other employee especially Black employees you all are quick to inform the public you all have placed them on Administrative Leave. Why haven’t you all done this to Kimberly Langston? Is this because she is a White woman and my child is a Black boy and you all do not see value in Black children?
Why? Because the school teacher is racist and hates little black kids? I seriously doubt that:
“A video of a Polk County teacher singing a variation on “Happy Birthday to You” to a kindergartner has gone viral, fueling allegations of racism — and alleged death threats toward the teacher.
Polk County Public Schools is now investigating the incident, which took place Sept. 29 at Floral Avenue Elementary School in Bartow.
The boy to whom the teacher sang is now too upset to return to school, his mother said.”
I’m going to take a wild guess that the boy wasn’t as upset as he became after the mother made this into a public scandal. He might not even have drawn the racial connotation until his mom in all essence told him how he should be offended.
“Prather’s son is Black, and she said the teacher is white. The teacher, who is not seen in the clip, emailed a copy of the video to Prather later that day.
“My reaction, it was I couldn’t believe it,” Prather said by phone on Oct. 1. “It’s nothing funny.”
The teacher lacked awareness of how this could be taken; that she emailed it to the mother to share, speaks to the fact that the teacher was probably oblivious to the potential harm and did not do it out of malice.
“Prather said she did not respond to the teacher but promptly complained to the school. She said that school employees told her they could do nothing but relay her complaint to the Polk County Public Schools office.
The district issued a statement on its social media channels the evening of Sept. 30.”
Why not talk it through with the teacher, first?
“Prather said that her son has grown so upset about the incident that he stayed home from school on Oct. 1.
“My son can’t — he’s not even in school right now, because he feels as if people are going to call him a monkey, and his feelings are hurt,” she said. “Now I have to seek counseling for him because he was crying for not to be back in her class or even go back to that school. I shouldn’t have to wake up every day to see that my son feels this way.”
YOU did that. I truly think the child would not feel this way if not for the mom’s reaction.
“Prather said that her posts of the video have spread widely, drawing comments or reposts from such prominent figures as civil rights attorney Ben Crump, actor and comedian D.L. Hughley and rapper Diamond ATL.”
Well of course! Ben Crump smells money.
“Stephanie Yocum, president of the Polk Education Association, said the woman singing in the video is a popular, longtime teacher. As the video has circulated, the teacher has received death threats, Yocum said.
“Every single person in this country deserves the right to fair investigations and due process,” Yocum said. “And it is a sad state of affairs in this country, no matter what side of an issue you end up being on, that people think that threatening somebody else’s life is acceptable.”
The teacher had not been suspended as of the morning of Oct. 1, Yocum said.
Prather was asked what she thinks the teacher should do.
“I feel like she should own up to her actions,” Prather said. “I feel like she should write an apology to my son and my family, because it was unacceptable, and my son is going to be traumatized for life. This is going worldwide, and I feel as if she should get fired, because that’s unacceptable.”
She said her son, Legend, is too upset to go back to school, now fearing his classmates will call him a “monkey.”
“I don’t approve of that, and that’s you humiliating him in front of his peers,” Prather said of the teacher, who she accused of “being racist.”
“No child should have to go to school and feel like they can’t confide in an authority figure without them calling them racial slurs, and that goes for any kid, not just my child. Now I have to seek counseling for him because he was crying for not to be back in her class or even go back to that school.
“I feel like she should write an apology to my son and my family, because it was unacceptable, and my son is going to be traumatized for life. This is going worldwide, and I feel as if she should get fired, because that’s unacceptable.”
Traumatized for life and going worldwide because you shared the video worldwide via tiktok and instagram and making a big deal out if it.
On a related note, I’m reminded of Larry Elder telling a story about his mom’s response to a racially-charged poem:
*update* October 10, 2025 1:15pm
Stumbled across an old post from 2022 of Kimberly Langston celebrating MLK Day with her kids:
A former fetus, the “wordsmith from nantucket” was born in Phoenix, Arizona in 1968. Adopted at birth, wordsmith grew up a military brat. He achieved his B.A. in English from the University of California, Los Angeles (graduating in the top 97% of his class), where he also competed rings for the UCLA mens gymnastics team. The events of 9/11 woke him from his political slumber and malaise. Currently a personal trainer and gymnastics coach.
The wordsmith has never been to Nantucket.
This and the Jingle bells Batman smells rhyme have been a kids favorite poor, lil bastid that wore a batman shirt to school.
I also, like Larry Elder, remember when it was common for adults to respond when a child said he’d been called names with the old saw, ” Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can never hurt me.”
Liberals have forced some of our population away from that truth into a fantasy land.
“Word are violence,” “Silence is violence,” and all the rest of their rewritten history.
Since Trump took his 2nd term it seems that woke is dying and the Overton Window is shifting.
But leave it to liberals to fight to keep fantasy land alive in the minds of their useful idiots.
It probably was an innocent song, sung to each birthday boy or girl in class, but in today’s times where “Trump is Hitler,” you can’t be too careful.
will it be Racist to sing HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU,YOU LIVE A ZOO
Would a racist teacher post this:
https://www.instagram.com/p/CYujZyBPCBJ/?img_index=3&igsh=cXJkeXVyYjVhb2s3