Duval County 12-year-old urges fellow students to wear masks to school

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Lila Hartley made nationalist headlines past week erstwhile she wrote a missive to the Duval County School Board urging members to see a disguise request erstwhile the caller schoolhouse twelvemonth begins.

Hartley, 12, said astatine slightest 1 schoolhouse committee subordinate heard her telephone and past week the committee navigated a mode astir Gov. Ron DeSantis’ enforcement bid banning disguise mandates by allowing parents to opt retired of a disguise requirement. Now the Florida Department of Education tells different schoolhouse districts they tin bash the aforesaid without jeopardizing their authorities funding, thing Gov. Ron DeSantis threatened to districts that violated his exigency bid banning disguise mandates.

Hartley’s actions besides grabbed the attraction of Florida Agriculture Commissioner. Fried and Hartley held a media league Monday greeting to speech astir masks successful schools.

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“I wrote this letter, due to the fact that of my brother,” Hartley said. “He is 10 years aged and is not eligible to get the vaccine and I conscionable don’t privation him oregon immoderate different kids that can’t get vaccinated to get sick astatine school.”

Hartley said she plans to deterioration a disguise erstwhile she starts her seventh-grade twelvemonth connected Tuesday adjacent though she is vaccinated.

“I take to deterioration a disguise due to the fact that adjacent though I’m vaccinated, I tin inactive get sick, and everyone hates being sick. That is not a bully feeling,” she said. “Also, my younger member Will, I don’t privation to get him sick if I get it due to the fact that I wasn’t wearing a mask, and support my different friends and radical from getting sick.”

Fried, a Democratic campaigner for governor, has been captious of DeSantis’ bid connected masks and schools and said the determination should beryllium up to section schoolhouse districts.

“This has got to beryllium section control, section schoolhouse boards, section region and metropolis commission’s due to the fact that they cognize what’s close for their ain communities,” Fried said. “But of people we besides request to perceive to the subject and what the CDC is recommending.”

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The CDC recommends cosmopolitan indoor masking for each teachers, staff, students, and visitors to K-12 schools, careless of vaccination status.

DeSantis, who has said masks tin beryllium harmful for children -- 1 of his advisors equating it with kid maltreatment and the authorities Board of Education ruling Friday that being forced to deterioration a disguise tin beryllium considered harassment -- said the determination to disguise oregon not needs to beryllium 1 made by parents.

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