Universal mask requirement stirs spat between school board members, silent protest from parents
August 5, 2021
Much of the discussion at the Alamance-Burlington school board’s special-called meeting Monday afternoon illustrated the growing pushback over whether public officials have a right to intervene in personal healthcare decisions by instituting Covid-19 mask mandates and “vaccine passports” that require proof of vaccination to travel, return to work, or enter certain facilities.
School board members met Monday afternoon to vote on ABSS superintendent Dr. Bruce Benson’s recommendation to require universal masking when the new school year starts on August 23 (see related story, this edition).
Witnesses said nearly 40 people took part on Tuesday in a protest in downtown Graham at which two people were arrested.
The protest formed in reaction to the killing of Andrew Brown Jr. by deputies of the Pasquotank County Sheriff s Office in Elizabeth City, N.C. Graham Police charged two of the protestors with violating the city’s new protest ordinance.
Protesters walked around Court Square, according to Elon University professor and photographer Tony Crider, and stopped at Sesquicentennial Park, often referred to as Wyatt Outlaw Park. There were no counter-protesters or any obvious police presence until about 7:20 p.m., when Graham Police officers came out and started distributing flyers with information about the protest ordinance. The city ordinance requires a permit or notice of protest for a demonstration of 10 or more downtown.