'Widespread Support' For School Walkouts Across Riverside County

By Paul J. Young, City News Service

RIVERSIDE COUNTY, CA — Some students and teachers at schools across Riverside County are planning to stay out or walk out Monday to protest Gov. Gavin Newsom's announced coronavirus vaccine mandate for K-12 students.

"This vaxx mandate for kids is a gross government overreach," Annette Hoegner, a Corona resident with two children, told City News Service. "It is incredibly unsettling that this is even being considered for children. This is an experimental drug. We are constantly being fed lies and propaganda, and we as parents are sick of it and willing to do whatever it takes to protect our children."

The protest is in response to Newsom's Oct. 1 announcement that SARS- CoV-2 vaccines would be included with the measles, mumps and rubella inoculations currently required for K-12 students — once the COVID shots receive "full approval" from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for all impacted age groups.

Pfizer's vaccine has full FDA approval for those 16 years and up, and is offered to those as young as age 12 under an emergency use authorization.

"While there continues to be encouraging signs and we're continuing to see progress with more and more people who maybe were on the fence that are now getting the vaccine ... there's still a struggle to get to where we need to go, and that means we need to do more and we need to do better," Newsom said when he announced the mandate.

He said the proposed mandate is "about protecting our children and school staff, and keeping them in the classroom." He said depending on when full authorizations for the vaccines are granted by the FDA, the mandate would take effect on Jan. 1, or July 1, 2022.

"The California Department of Public Health will consider the recommendations of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Academy of Family Physicians prior to implementing a requirement," according to the governor's office.

Hoegner said there's widespread support for Monday's demonstration, although it was unclear how many people actually intended to participate. River Heights Intermediate School teacher Michael Pass told CNS he believes roughly a quarter of all Corona-Norco Unified School District staff will be taking part in the sit-outs and walk-outs.

RELATED: CA School Walkout Against COVID-19 Mandates: 5 Things To Know

Officials from the district told CNS in a statement they are "aware of the statewide sit-out being planned. In preparation for this, the district has contingency plans in place to ensure that teaching and learning continue in our schools."

The neighboring Riverside Unified School District has also established "protocols for walk-outs, should they occur," according to RUSD."

"We have not been notified of anyone organizing this effort within our middle and high schools," according to the district.

In the Moreno Valley Unified School District, spokeswoman Anahi Velasco told CNS that officials have been monitoring social media buzz about protest-related absences, but it was unclear how many schools might be impacted.

"We haven't necessarily heard about protests in Moreno Valley," she said. "We'll be meeting with administrators in our schools to make sure they're supported."

Other school districts were contacted but either did not respond or declined comment.

"We believe that daily attendance at school is best for all students," county Superintendent of Schools Edwin Gomez said. "Educators work hard every day to serve students and mitigate learning loss created by the pandemic. Schools will continue to follow the guidelines provided by the state to maintain safe and healthy campuses for students and staff."

Pass, a world history teacher, told CNS he loves his job, and the thought of losing it over a vaccine mandate causes him heartache.

"I and many other teachers in my district have made it clear that we are prepared to lose our jobs to protect our freedoms," Pass said. "We love what we do. However, we must also be the example of what it means to be American, to be free."

"As a U.S. citizen and a free human being, I have a right to accept or refuse medical treatment," he added. "Neither I, nor my family, will be mandated, bullied, coerced or shamed into compliance (with a vaccine mandate). I am not anti-vax, but I do not trust this vaccine. It is not political; it is not partisan. I do not think ill of those who choose to take the jab, nor do I attempt to dissuade them. It is their choice to make, just as it is my choice."

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, less than 10% of COVID infections nationwide have involved those under 18 years old. In Riverside County, only three of the 5,092 virus-related deaths documented countywide have been in the under-18 category, translating to 0.0005892%, according to the county Department of Public Health.

Copyright 2021, City News Service, Inc.