Virginia mother on teachers union questioning new CDC school guidelines
Christy Hudson, a mother of three, argues that ‘it feels like there’s no amount of science, vaccinations or even extra stimulus funds that will be enough for this association to support returning to school.’
Christy Hudson, a mother of three in Virginia, slammed the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) for raising concerns about new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) school guidance, arguing that it seems like nothing is enough for the association to support having students back in the classroom.
“It feels like there’s no amount of science, vaccinations or even extra stimulus funds that will be enough for this association to support returning to school,” Hudson, the founder of Open FCPS, a coalition of parents seeking educational justice for their children in the Fairfax County Public School System, told “Fox & Friends” on Thursday.
“The goalpost for what is considered a safe return just keeps moving.”
CDC UPDATES SCHOOL DISTANCING GUIDELINES TO 3 FEET AMID MOUNTING PRESSURE
In a letter addressed to CDC Director Rochelle Walensky and Education Secretary Miguel Cardona, AFT President Randi Weingarten wrote Tuesday that the organization was “not convinced” current evidence supports changing physical distancing restrictions.
On Friday, the CDC announced the update, stating in a release that it now recommends students should maintain a distance of “at least 3 feet in classroom settings” with universal masking in elementary schools and areas where transmission is low, moderate or substantial.
The agency cited three studies published in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) last week that “build on evidence that physical distancing of at least 3 feet between students can safely be adopted in classroom settings where mask use is universal and other prevention measures are taken.”
“Our concern is that the cited studies do not identify the baseline mitigation strategies needed to support 3 feet of physical distancing. Moreover, they were not conducted in our nation’s highest-density and least-resourced schools, which have poor ventilation, crowding and other structural challenges,” Weingarten wrote in the letter.
AFT is the second-largest teachers labor union in the country.
“What is the end game here? Are we never going back to school?” Hudson asked on Thursday. “I mean, we just keep punting the ball and at some point you would think that the teachers associations would recognize that the harm that we’re doing to children by keeping them out of schools is far worse than the threat of any virus and we have the science now that tells us that.”
Hudson pointed out that she hears “heartbreaking” stories “every single day” from families in her area.
“We have teens that are self-harming. We have a rise in eating disorders. We have depressed kids. We have lonely children and it’s just heartbreaking to watch,” she said.
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“I mean these children have been out of school here in my town for more than a year and it’s just pointless.”
She stressed that children need to be back in the classroom because “that’s where they are best served.”
Fox News’ Julia Musto contributed to this report.
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