On the heels of its virtual convention last month, the NEA, the smaller AFT, and their affiliates have launched a campaign to force universal mask-wearing among schoolchildren. Masks are already mandated in many districts across the country as schools reopen, and the unions are among their most strident advocates. For example, the AFT state affiliate in Massachusetts voted unanimously to require masks for all students from preschool age through college, and urged the governor to issue a mandatory mask order.

Recent news reports claim an uptick in cases of the virus among children that require hospitalization, but deaths are nearly unknown in this age group and have even sharply decreased among adults. Meanwhile, data collected over the past 18 months has repeatedly demonstrated that the transmission of COVID-19 among schoolchildren is negligible and that daily mask-wearing causes both physical and psychological harm.

Unions, Politics Behind Mandatory Masks

Research related to mandatory masks in schools shows a direct correlation between the strength of a local teachers union and the likelihood of a school district imposing a mask mandate." The website HealthAffairs.org published a study of Iowa school districts earlier this month which showed that "a 1-standard-deviation increase in the teachers' unionization rate was associated with a 12.5 percent relative increase in the probability that a school district adopted a mask mandate." This research also indicated that the number of private- and parochial-school alternatives available in an area played a role. Where there were more educational options available for parents, the public-school mask mandates were less onerous.

Annenberg Brown University's research paper titled "Politics, Markets, and Pandemics: Public Education's Response to COVID-19" reveals similar findings. An excerpt reads: "Contrary to the conventional understanding of school districts as localized and non-partisan actors, we find evidence that politics, far more than science, shaped school district decision-making. Mass partisanship and teacher union strength (emphasis added) best explain how school boards approached reopening."

Kerry McDonald, Senior Education Fellow at The Foundation for Economic Education (FEE), cited results of research released in March 2021 that show "school closures are uncorrelated with the actual incidence of the virus, but are rather strongly associated with unionization, [which] implies that the decision to close schools has been a political—not scientific—decision." These findings were published on March 25 in Social Science Quarterly by author and researcher Corey A. DeAngelis and Stanford University Researcher Christos Makridis.

Outlier COVID Cases Causing Chaos

Chaos over isolated cases of the coronavirus is already happening in schools from Georgia to Arkansas to Arizona, where classes are disrupted and students are being quarantined. FEE's McDonald predicts that "the prospect of rolling quarantines throughout the year because a classmate tests positive may lead more parents to unenroll their children from a district school in favor of a calmer, more settled learning environment."

McDonald said new data from Sweden proving that the country's reluctance to close its schools over the coronavirus didn't harm children, "is not preventing back-to-school time in the U.S. from being rocky and contentious."

In a remarkable about-face, some local teachers-union chapters are refusing to support the prospect of mandatory vaccines for teachers and administrators, after insisting last school year that teachers could not return to the classroom unless and until a vaccine was readily available. Even Andrew Ross Sorkin, a New York Times columnist and a co-anchor for CNBC observed: "Teachers, whose entire professional mission is to educate and keep kids safe, won't require the vaccine among themselves." Instead, the teacher's union mantra this year seems to have switched from being all about vaccines to demands for regular on-site COVID testing, at no charge to them of course.

Goliath vs. David Lawsuit

The ongoing battle of parents against mandatory in-class masking, forced CRT and gender identity indoctrination is resulting in more children exiting the public-school system. Since the start of the pandemic, many parents have for the first time become aware of what their children are actually learning in the classroom and are seeking alternatives. While it may be true that the unions lack "bottom up" accountability and thus do whatever they want, at present they are unable to prevent parents from pulling their children out of public schools.

The Rhode Island chapter of the NEA and its local South Kingstown branch have filed an unprecedented lawsuit against Nicole Solas, a mom who was concerned about the politically charged ideology her child might be exposed to in her public school. Last month, Education Reporter described how Solas was threatened with legal action by the South Kingstown District School Board for asking too many questions about what her daughter would be learning. Solas initially queried the school principal out of curiosity as to why the words "boys" and "girls" are no longer used to refer to kindergarteners, and her concerns grew when she encountered pushback and stalling. The board ultimately declined to pursue litigation, but in a classic Goliath vs. David case and as if on cue, the NEA stepped in and filed the lawsuit.

The Goldwater Institute's Director of National Litigation, Jon Riches, is representing Solas in her fight against the NEA. The Defense of Liberty blog quoted Riches as saying: "Nicole Solas is entitled to ask questions. And she does not deserve to face legal action just for asking questions any concerned parent would ask." He added that Rhode Island law "does not authorize what the NEA is attempting to do here."

Solas noted: "The NEA is so determined to push its political agenda that they are willing to expose themselves in a court of law for who they really are: an association of bullies eager to challenge a stay-at-home mom who simply wanted to know what her daughter would be taught."

Some may reasonably wonder if this lawsuit, filed by the nation's largest public sector teachers' union with a $300 million budget against a lone parent, is more an act of intimidation to demonstrate its power and discourage other parents from asking questions. The unions may enjoy the support of the current administration in Washington, DC, the mainstream media, big tech, and the nation's liberal elite, but the eyes of ordinary parents are opening, and many do not like what they see. Fortunately, these parents have alternatives.

For Liberty News, 8-9-21
In Defense of Liberty Blog - NEA Sues Mom 8-5-21
The Daily Signal, 8-5-21
Washington Times.com-8/7/2021

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