Ohio fifth-grader stands up to ‘inappropriate’ anti-maskers at board meeting
An Ohio fifth-grader, and the youngest pro-mask person at a school board meeting in Cuyahoga Falls this week, spoke up to “inappropriate” anti-maskers who tried to heckle her.
Kaylan Park, 10, was at the meeting Wednesday to support the district’s mask mandate — which was opponents were protesting after its recent extension until at least Oct. 29, the Akron Beacon Journal reported Friday.
“It is super weird to be here because adults don’t think that their children should wear masks,” Kaylan said, according to the outlet. “A lot of you guys are adults. You guys should be able to know that masks save lives.”
As mask opponents talked over her, Kaylan stood strong, “Please be quiet…It’s inappropriate that you guys can’t stay quiet.”
She reminded opponents that wearing a mask would be “for your safety … like kindness,” the paper reports.
“It’s like kindness. My teacher tells me when you do something for other people, they can do it back,” she said, according to the paper. “Wear a mask for them and they’ll wear it back. … You’re showing kindness.”
“The reality is, I need to keep her in class,” Superintendent Dr. Todd Nichols said at the end of the meeting, pointing to the middle schooler, the outlet reports.
The meeting was held at the natatorium — where masks are not required — instead of the normal setting for the high school library, with a police presence requested following the sudden ending of last month’s meeting after many attendees would not mask up, according to the paper.