By Jenny Suo
An Australian school is in trouble after getting rid of the word "gay" from the iconic song ‘Kookaburra sits in the old gum tree’.
It was substituted with the word ‘fun’ to stop the students from laughing, but gay rights groups weren't impressed.
Five and six-year-olds at Cheltenham's Le Page Primary School have been asked to replace the word ‘gay’ with ‘fun’.
“They laugh over the term when they hear it because they believe there’s something funny or different about it so in an effort to make my life easier I made the decision, ‘hey, lets just sing fun’,” principal Garry Martin says.
But gay rights groups aren't feeling chirpy about the decision.
Crusader Hillis from the Also Foundation said, "I don't think that's a very good message for kids to have, they're drawing attention to it and being a bit stupid".
It isn't the first time the song has caused controversy; Aussie pop group Men at Work faced a multi-million dollar bill for royalties after the judge decided they lifted their hit ‘Down Under’ from the iconic song.
But this latest dispute won't cost anything; the principal says he never meant to cause any offence and is happy to make the Kookaburra's life as gay as it used to be.
3 News