The anti-mask parents are failing our children [“Pushback in the anti-masking war,” Opinion, Aug. 22]. As they rant about rights, they forget that with rights come responsibilities. No one should be fighting for their child to be less protected and less safe. So insisting that children be without masks in school is not only negligent, it is abuse.
If parents truly want to prioritize their children’s welfare, they should attend board meetings with purpose. They should discuss which masks are most efficient, decide how to fundraise for improved ventilation, and make sure the latest mitigation tools are utilized.
Yet these meetings devolve into shouting matches. What happened to caring for the children? It is about risk and the potential for severe illness. Children are not even eligible for the few treatments infected adults can receive. The 5- to 11-year -olds are most vulnerable. The transmission rate when all children in school are masked is significantly less than when they are unmasked.
It’s not about the power of the parent — it is about the protection of the child. Children watch how you support their right to be safe and healthy. Don’t fail them. They will remember.
— Pam Volpe, Smithtown
I was shocked to read that some doctors, religious leaders and school educators are enabling some parents on how to avoid the mask mandates in some schools that are there to keep their children and other children safe and healthy [“Coaching to evade mandates,” News, Aug. 22].
I can’t understand that the simple and effective way to keep COVID-19 at bay has become a symbol of individual freedom. Freedom from what? Freedom to get sick and fill up hospital beds, leaving others who might need lifesaving help from strokes, heart attacks or severe accidents to possibly die?
These irresponsible leaders should be charged with endangering the health of our population and face fines and jail time.
Every day, more die from the coronavirus, and now the young are suffering because of the silly notion that we are entitled to do what we want. When do your acts in the name of freedom infringe on my freedom from getting sick and dying?
This has got to stop. We need to defeat this pandemic so we can all enjoy the freedom from fear of getting deathly ill.
— Brenda Reiss, Commack
After America’s long battle against COVID-19, surviving, rushing to get vaccinated, masking, then unmasking and masking again, we are finally moving closer to sending our children back to school, entrusting their health and lives to educators. We can only hope and pray.
Our school board recently emailed its school reopening policies, which include — apart from common sense issues such as masking and spacing — teachers not being asked about their vaccination status. There is no guidance in place regarding the monitoring of teachers who refuse vaccinations or try to conceal
this.
Far from safeguarding our preschoolers, this policy seems to serve only the interests of the anti-vaxxers, especially as mandates for vaccinations for all health care and essential workers are being enforced for entry to gyms and restaurants. Emails to our district superintendent and principal have not elicited any fruitful responses.
As one lone voice, I hope someone will do something to change guidance before it’s too late.
— Dr. Ruma Guha, Sands Point
When New York City peaked with COVID-19, what began the downward trend of infection and deaths? Masks, social distancing and good hygiene practices were mandated, and we saw significant changes even before the vaccine was approved [“No masks at LIRR, schools baffle many,” Letters, Aug. 22].
I ask those opposing masks: Where is the science that supports your position? This is not a game of your opinion versus my opinion. These are life-and-death decisions.
More than 630,000 Americans have died from COVID-19. I have not seen any deaths reported from wearing a mask. Many parents have said their child actually had fewer colds and infections wearing a mask.
Let’s consider the lives saved and the pain and suffering spared by this simple measure.
— Louis Lupinacci, St. James
I propose a solution for parents who do not wish their child to wear a mask. Form a class with only the unmasked, and find a teacher to teach that class. Find a venue for this cohort. Your child will be happy, and the larger masked cohort will be safe. These parents do have the right to have their children unmasked. What they do not have is the right for their children to infect others.
— Richard M. Frauenglass, Huntington
