We Support Safe Schools

Some of our friends in Fountain Hills object to COVID preventive measures by the Fountain Hills School District.  They state in part:  “On April 19, 2021, Governor Ducey removed the requirement that Arizona School Districts are to have such measures in place.”  “Therefore, the undersigned parents of students in Fountain Hills Unified School District #98 hereby declare the following:” “We hereby assert our rights as parents to reject your imposition of masks, face shields, and social distancing on our children in our schools.” 

We disagree with the above statements for the following reasons: The action of Governor Ducey – who has no training in medicine or epidemiology or any other body of knowledge that provides competence in such matters, is at odds with the recommendation of the physicians and epidemiologists of the Center for Disease Control which states  “For indoor public settings such as busy shopping centres, religious buildings, restaurants, schools and public transport, you should wear a mask if you cannot maintain physical distance from others.”  Some may consider the position of the CDC to be alarmist.  We do not, and we believe that the relatives and close friends of the more than 600,000 dead people in the United States will agree with us.  Some may consider the position of the CDC to infringe on their freedom and individual rights.  It does.  So does a requirement to stop when the traffic light is red.  So does the requirement to stay on one side of the road.  So does the requirement to pay taxes for the common good (well, some room for discussion about what our tax money is used for).  As members of society there are things we do either because they are formally required or are a commonly agreed social practice – such as standing in line at the check-out counter at the store.  We do these things to protect others as well as ourselves. Let's not politicize a pandemic. 

We relinquish some of our individual freedoms in the name of living in a society that cares for its citizens and for making life as pleasant as possible for its people.  

Paul Coleman, Cynthia Couture    Contact the author of the petition