Oklahoma Democrats Introduce New Legislation That Would Repeal the Ban on Mask Mandates at Schools
Oklahoma House Democrats just introduced legislation House Bill (HB 2967) know as the "Safe at School" act that would repeal the current statewide ban on mask mandates in schools.
Awhile back Governor Kevin Stitt signed Senate Bill (SB 658) which prohibits schools from requiring face masks and COVID-19 vaccinations, as well as vaccination passports. The only time schools can require masks is if the Governor declares a state of emergency.
School will be back in session starting this Thursday, August 12th (08-12-21) in Lawton, Fort Sill with outlining towns and counties starting the week after. A lot of parents and students are concerned, understandably. With the recent spike in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations in the state, along with the Delta variant and other strains of the virus people are worried about an outbreak and another shutdown.
Some places in Oklahoma are worse than others when it comes to COVID-19 numbers. Areas that are heaviest hit want control over their district's policies when it comes to masks and other COVID-19 protocols.
Now nothing says you can't wear a mask if you want to, they're just not making it mandatory. Governor Stitt has said it's about the freedom to choose and to make your own decisions about your health and well being instead of being forced. That applies to both masks and vaccinations.
It seems weekly, if not daily things are changing and what was the truth yesterday, isn't the truth today. There's a lot of misinformation and in my opinion if we're being completely honest even the health experts don't know 100% what's going on, or what to expect. We're learning as we go which can't be helped. The problem is no one wants to say "I don't know, or I'm unsure." Or at least it seems that way.
So what are your thoughts about all this? Do you think individual school districts should be able to implement mask mandates? Or do you agree with the current ban on schools being able to make masks mandatory? Take the quick poll below and let us know your opinion: