Economic Collapse

[VH Gambler]

I wonder if they are separate but equal?

Georgia school creates mask-optional campus for students who won’t follow mandate
Updated 1:47 PM; Today 1:47 PM
By The Associated Press

Fights over masks in schools continued to tear at Georgia communities on Thursday even as hospital leaders renewed warnings of shrinking capacity to handle a surge of COVID-19 cases.

Parents in Gwinnett County who oppose that district’s mandate are threatening to sue, and The Savannah Morning News reported that U.S. Rep Buddy Carter sent out a fundraising email saying masks in schools are “a Big Government power grab” that are “suffocating our children.”


Meanwhile, the Fulton County district, which currently mandates masks for all its students, announced it would open a school for up to 500 students who wouldn’t have to wear masks.

That’s a concession to parents and students angered over the masking order. The district also said it would open remote learning program for up to 300 students in grades K-2.

Statewide, mask mandates continue to grow in schools. At least 40 districts covering 770,000 students are requiring face coverings. That’s almost 45% of Georgia’s 1.7 million students. At least five districts have sent all students home, including Ben Hill County, which starts virtual instruction Friday. Others have stopped in-person teaching at individual schools. Crisp County High School in Cordele shifted to virtual instruction Thursday, while Clayton County sent students home from a second elementary school.

Georgia’s case count continues to rise, with the seven-day rolling average climbing above 5,800 on Thursday, the worst since Feb. 1. The number of COVID-19 patients in hospitals is also rising rapidly, exceeding 3,900 on Thursday even as many hospital executives warn they don’t have enough beds and staff. At least 30 hospitals statewide reported that they were turning patients away from emergency rooms and intensive care units on Thursday.


Leaders of Macon and Warner Robins hospitals held a joint news conference Thursday to implore people to change their behavior, one of a series statewide.

“We are not here today to debate the pros and cons and all the rhetoric that is out there,” The Telegraph of Macon reported that Houston Healthcare President Charles Briscoe said. “Today is about what we see in our local community. And what we see consistently is those individuals that are unvaccinated are at great risk of severe hospitalization and at great risk of death.”

The seven-day average for the share of positive molecular tests kept climbing to 16.4% on Wednesday, far above the 5% average that experts say means there is enough testing to detect most virus cases. The pace of deaths is also rising, getting close to 22,000 statewide since the pandemic began.

The state has recorded almost 1.25 million infections.

https://www.al.com/education/2021/08/georgia-school-creates-mask-optional-campus-for-students-who-wont-follow-mandate.html