A New Jersey 4th grader begged Gov. Phil Murphy to stop making her wear a mask after she was sent home from school last month for refusing to wear one, her family said.
Maci Young, 10, wrote a letter to the Democratic governor detailing the reasons why she shouldn’t have to wear a face covering at Robert Hunter Elementary School in Raritan Township, Fox News reported.
“I hope that one day school will go back to being fun because I am only a kid once,” Maci wrote after her run-in with teachers on Jan. 25.
“I don’t get in trouble and today, when I did, I was really upset. I didn’t want to get in trouble, but I don’t want to wear the mask anymore.
“It hurts and I don’t learn a lot now because my teacher keeps telling people to pull up their masks. I shouldn’t be yelled at for trying to tell you that I am having trouble breathing. I shouldn’t be put in a room by myself because I stood up for myself.”
Maci added that it was hard to breathe wearing the face covering, she got headaches frequently and the inside of her mask would get often get dirty.
The 4th grader wrote the letter after she was isolated and put into a room next to the nurse’s office when she told her teacher she didn’t want to wear her mask anymore, her family said.
Her mother, Chelsea Young, told the outlet that she had to rush to the school to pick up her crying daughter.
Maci’s letter was made public after Gov. Murphy revealed a week ago that he was finally dropping his school mask mandate from March 7.
School officials will now be in charge of deciding whether masks will still be required after the statewide mandate is lifted.
Flemington-Raritan School District, which oversees Maci’s school, voted on Monday to make masks optional for students from next month.
Maci’s mom said they considered the governor’s decision to drop the mandate a win for her daughter.
“This is a win. [She will] get to be a normal kid again,” Young said.
“For parents who still want their children to wear masks, that is your choice, but it’s time for my children to have a choice as well.”
