TAMPA, FLA. (WSVN) - A disturbing display at a Tampa middle school has sparked outrage online, after a teacher was captured on video hanging a Black baby doll using a cord.
Parents said they are beyond upset, including the mother of a 14-year-old student who was horrified after seeing the video her son recorded.
The now-viral video clip has been viewed and shared hundreds of thousands of times online.
It shows Karen Whitmire Savage, a teacher at Barrington Middle School in Tampa, using an electrical cord to suspend the doll from a classroom TV monitor.
Fourteen-year-old Noah, the student who shot the video, said his classmates initially reacted with nervous laughter, followed by shock as Whitmire Savage, 63, left the doll hanging in front of the class.
“She took the charger cord and wrapped it around the baby’s neck and like tied it,” said Noah. “Everybody started telling her it was wrong and racist to do that.”
Nina Williams said her son immediately knew something was wrong and went straight to the school office after class.
“I’m still in shock,” she said.
The concerned parent said Noah initially hesitated to share the video because he felt intimidated after Whitmire Savage allegedly followed him to the office.
“That is not something that I expected my children in 2026 to ever have to deal with seeing, a lynching, whether it was real or fake,” said Williams.
Whitmire Savage’s personal social media pages described her as a mother, grandmother and longtime educator who calls teaching her “gift and passion.”
“I hope that she’s not allowed to teach again,” said Noah.
In a statement, Hillsborough County Schools’ superintendent called the display inappropriate, highly offensive and completely unacceptable.
He confirmed that Whitmire Savage was removed from the school as the District’s Office of Professional Standards investigates.
School officials said they are committed to making sure students feel respected, safe and supported in their classrooms.
Parents and students said they are waiting now to see what disciplinary action, if any, the district ultimately takes.
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