Kirsta Bowman, a music teacher at Barack Obama School of Career and Technical Education, is drawing national attention after posting a TikTok video explaining why she refuses to let her students sing “Jingle Bells” or use sleigh bells in her class.
The teacher is drawing national attention after posting a TikTok video explaining why she refuses to let her students sing “Jingle Bells” or use sleigh bells.
Her TikTok post has gone viral, generating more than 321,000 views, 39,000 likes, and nearly 1,200 comments.
In the video, Bowman says “For those of you unaware, the song Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells in general, were put on enslaved people so they could not escape their enslavers. And this is literally a jingle bell cuff that is meant to be worn by a kid.” (she is holding a sleigh bell in the post)
Bowman said she is comfortable being labeled “too woke” if it means avoiding what she considers racist practices in her classroom.
The controversy stems in part from research by historian Kyna Hamill, who reported that “Jingle Bells” was publicly performed by a blackface minstrel performer in 1857.
However, Hamill has also stated that there is no evidence the song’s composer intended the song to be racist or that its lyrics themselves contain racist themes.
Many historians and commentators dispute the claim that sleigh bells or the song itself should be considered racist. Critics argue that “Jingle Bells” has long been understood as a holiday song about winter sleigh rides and that claims linking it directly to slavery are either exaggerated or unsupported.
As expected, social media reactions have been sharply divided.
Supporters of Bowman defended her position. One commenter wrote, “And it is that deep!” Another added, “I thought it was about a sleigh that has bells on it. That’s messed up.”
Others were far more skeptical. One commenter responded, “I feel like we’re actually just making stuff up at this point,” while another asked, “When did we start reading way too much into things?” As reported by Alejandro Josan
Bowman has continued engaging with critics and supporters online, sharing comments from the debate and discussing other songs that she believes have problematic historical origins.
Her post raises questions about how Barack Obama School administrators and Milwaukee Public Schools view the attention surrounding one of their teachers’ viral social media posts.
Bowman is a white woman in a very Black school. Maybe the plight of her students got the best of her.
