California officials were forced to backtrack after saying they planned to require all children returning to school in the fall to wear masks, regardless of their coronavirus vaccination status.
The California Department of Public Health released the guidance earlier this week, saying public schools throughout the state would be required to enforce a mask mandate for all students, faculty and staff.
Any who refused to comply with the policy would be “excluded” from campus, the policy stated.
After facing backlash from parents and health officials, however, California leaders reversed course on the mask mandate and clarified that local school districts would decide for themselves whether to send home students who don’t comply with the mandate.
“Mask enforcement will continue to be handled by local schools as the state recognizes the unique needs of each district and child,” CDPH officials said in a statement on Tuesday.
The agency had claimed the masking policy was consistent with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s guidance, but the CDC recently updated its guidance to say students and faculty who are fully vaccinated do not need to wear masks at all.
Regardless, the state’s health department defended its mask requirement and claimed it was implemented to prevent “bullying” from selectively requiring only non-vaccinated students to follow the arbitrary and frequently revised mitigation standards.
“Detrimental effects of differential mask policies include: potential stigma, bullying, isolation of vaccinated OR unvaccinated students, depending on the culture and attitudes in the school or surrounding community,” the department said in a statement.
Jonathan Zachreson, a father of three students and founder of the anti-lockdown group Reopen California Schools, said he plans to sue the state over the mask mandate in the coming weeks.
“It’s outrageous,” Zachreson said. “We’re continuing to put the burden of this pandemic on our children, and it needs to stop.”
