Lawsuit over Florida school mask mandates now before judge
He pointed to Florida’s skyrocketing COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations since the delta variant took hold in June, including among children. Several Florida children’s hospitals have recently reported that they have more COVID patients than any time previously.
“Despite that reality, despite all of the science, the governor has sought to insert himself into matters of local health concerns and impede the ability of school boards to do what they are constitutionally mandated to do, which is to operate and control their schools,” Whisenhunt told the judge. The Tallahassee hearing, concluding a four-day trial, was held online because of the pandemic.
He pointed to Florida’s skyrocketing COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations since the delta variant took hold in June, including among children. Several Florida children’s hospitals have recently reported that they have more COVID patients than any time previously.
“Despite that reality, despite all of the science, the governor has sought to insert himself into matters of local health concerns and impede the ability of school boards to do what they are constitutionally mandated to do, which is to operate and control their schools,” Whisenhunt told the judge. The Tallahassee hearing, concluding a four-day trial, was held online because of the pandemic.
GLADES COUNTY, Fla. (WFLA) — An elementary school in Glades County is shifting all of its fifth-grade classes to virtual learning due to what the district calls a large number of COVID-19 cases and quarantined students.
Glades County Schools announced the move to virtual learning on Facebook on Thursday evening. According to the announcement, virtual learning will start Monday for fifth-grade students at West Glades Elementary School. They are scheduled to return to in-person learning on Sept. 7.
“We apologize for any inconvenience that this might create for your families,” the district said. “It is very important for us to keep students as safe as possible.
Van Jones: The Important Work to Keep All of Us Healthy
The current health and economic crisis has hit African American communities particularly hard. CNN Host and CEO of the REFORM Alliance, Van Jones, says that’s because of long-standing health inequities impacting African Americans. The drivers of those inequities are often complex, says Jones. One of the drivers of health inequality is the fact that African American people are more likely to work in physically-demanding jobs, which can be harmful to their long-term health.
Another reason for these disparities, Jones explains in his CNN op-ed, is food deserts common in African American neighborhoods, which contribute to worse health outcomes experienced by many African Americans. He says, “[African American people] tend to live in neighborhoods where the stores sell less healthy food; fast food joints and liquor stores provide too many meals in urban America.”
Jones encourages everyone to take proactive steps to improve their health, but also implores the United States make systemic changes to expand access to healthy foods, good health care and more tools to end the structural inequalities impacting Black Americans that have existed for far too long.
