NEW HAVEN, Conn. – A substitute teacher fired for showing an alleged bootleg copy of "The Simpsons Movie" to third-, fourth- and fifth-graders is suing the New Haven school board.
Aquil Abdul-Salaam's lawsuit claims he's lost his ability to ever work again in the field of education.
He is seeking more than $15,000 in damages, according to the New Haven Register.
School officials said they warned the 30-year-old substitute that the PG-13 rated film wasn't appropriate for children.
“As we said at the time of termination, ‘The Simpsons Movie’ was not part of the school’s accepted videos," school spokeswoman Catherine Sullivan-DeCarlo told the New Haven Register. "It was clearly labeled as having content appropriate for kids at least 15 years of age and older.”
Click here to view the full report from the New Haven Register.
School officials told the newspaper that while official copies of the movie are labeled PG-13, the one purchased by Abdul-Salaam was marked 'suitable only for persons of 15 years and over.'
Abdul-Salaam's lawyer says school officials characterized him as some kind of a pervert for showing "The Simpsons Movie."
The movie is rated as inappropriate for children under 13 and contains mild profanity, nudity and adult humor including scenes during which two male police officers share a kiss and the Bart Simpson character skateboards naked.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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