'So Screw You': Tensions Rise At Hatboro-Horsham School Board Meeting Over Mask Requirement
HORSHAM, Pa. (CBS) -- Tense moments at a Montgomery County school board meeting Monday, which pitted parents against parents over the issue of masks in school.
The Hatboro-Horsham School Board meeting felt charged from the start and it was quickly clear that the debate over wearing a mask or not isn't going away anytime soon.
"So screw you and get it together, lady," one parent said during the meeting.
Emotions overflowed Monday night at the Hatboro-Horsham School Board meeting to discuss the current universal indoor mask policy for all students, staff, and visitors, regardless of their vaccination status.
"I want choice, that's all I want," one parent said.
"Never before have I been so disappointed in this district and its school board's decision," another parent said.
"We are all over the masks, but unfortunately, it is our best defense, along with vaccination, which currently does not include the youngest in our district," one woman said.
The meeting comes on the same day Montgomery County's health board announced an indoor mask recommendation as COVID transmission continues to climb, and more than a month after the board submitted its back-to-school safety plan.
"Case counts are 10 times higher than what they were on July 8 in both the county and the local municipality," an official said.
Still, some could be seen without a face-covering in the auditorium while others showed off T-shirts with their position.
"We're all masketeers because we're pro-mask," one parent said.
Proof of the rift that remains unresolved and the challenge still facing this district.
"I see posts online, people have been nasty to each other," parent Barbara Murphy said.
"When are we as a community going to start working together, stop working against each other to help advance our school district?" one man said.
The first day of class is Sept. 9 in Hatboro-Horsham and as it stands now, all who attend in-person learning will have to wear a mask when doing so.
