The City of San Francisco, California is suing its own school district in order to reopen classrooms due to the high number of suicides among children during the pandemic.
The district initially planned to reopen schools in phases starting in January, but those plans were put on hold after the district failed to reach a deal with labor unions over safety measures for staff in time.
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More than 100 cars bearing signs saying “More resources, less lawsuits”; “Fund our schools”; and “Fund our communities” traveled through San Francisco Feb. 10. The Make Our Schools and Communities Safe caravan was called in response to City Attorney Dennis Herrera’s announcement that the City would sue the school district to reopen schools.
Over 100 cars joined the Make Our Schools and Communities Safe caravan in San Francisco yesterday.
London Breed: the people demand you DROP THE LAWSUIT and give San Francisco schools the resources they need. Nothing less! pic.twitter.com/YIIOiXKb2e PSL Bay Area (@PSLBayArea) February 11, 2021
Herrera, with the backing of Mayor London Breed, announced the suit on Feb. 3. He has since expanded the lawsuit. Both he and Breed are playing political theater with educators’ and students’ lives while doing little to address the multiple crises working people in this city face.
San Francisco Asks Judge to Force School Reopenings as Number of Suicidal Students Rises
The city of San Francisco on Thursday asked a judge to order the immediate reopening of schools for in-person learning, alleging the continued closure violates children’s constitutional right to attend and is contributing to a mental health crisis.
Public schools in the California city have been shut down for in-person learning for nearly one year despite being allowed to resume such classes since fall 2020 and officials say those in the education arena lack a viable reopening plan.
The continued closure is “catalyzing a mental health crisis among school-aged children,” asserts an emergency motion filed by City Attorney Dennis Herrera, quoting Dr. Jeanne Noble, director of COVID Response for the UCSF Emergency Department.
S.F. Mayor Breed worries schools won t open this year: We have to do better
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Hundreds of people rallied outside City Hall on Saturday in a push to reopen public schools for in-person learning.Santiago Mejia / The Chronicle
Mayor London Breed expressed doubt Tuesday that San Francisco’s classrooms will reopen this school year, even as she pledged to begin vaccinating educators by the end of the month and the San Francisco Unified School District reached a tentative deal with the unions to return students to the classroom.
That deal says classrooms may open once the city’s case count enters the less-restrictive red tier, and vaccinations are available for on-site school staff. Teachers and other staff would return to the classroom without demanding vaccines if cases fall even further and the city enters the orange tier.