Earn our trust

At the Sept. 14 Chesapeake School Board meeting, Chairman Victoria L. Proffitt read a statement from the city attorney that stated that any government meeting was exempt from the governor’s executive order requiring that masks be worn indoors. A speaker was even admonished from handing out masks to the board. Later on in the meeting Vice Chairman Colleen Leary made some remarks about people being very rude in their communication to the board, and hoped people would be more respectful going forward.

You know what would be considered very respectful? Wearing a mask at these meetings instead of flaunting a loophole that exempts you. Especially since several attendees at the meeting witnessed board members standing shoulder to shoulder at times before and after the meeting, and one attendee was in the bathroom at the same time as a board member who wasn’t wearing mask.

But all of that aside, how can parents and teachers trust that masking will be enforced when students return to school if they are so quick to avail themselves of a shortcut? Additionally, members of the School Board should be setting an example for all —modeling good practices for the students and teachers they represent. The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention testified recently that masks are the “most powerful public health tool we have” and encouraged Americans to embrace them. I would’ve liked to see our School Board aim higher than the bare minimum, though they’ve made it obvious that embracing masks is the last thing they want to do.

Cathlene Uhl, Chesapeake