Miguel Cardona
Joe Biden asked Education Secretary Miguel Cardona to investigate Republican states that have banned mask mandates in schools.
The Associated Press reported that this investigation aims to determine if allowing mask freedom is a violation of students’ right to a free, public education.
The Education Department announced Monday that it’s investigating five Republican-led states that have banned mask requirements in schools, saying the policies could amount to discrimination against students with disabilities or health conditions.
The department’s Office for Civil Rights sent letters to education chiefs in Iowa, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Utah. Those states have barred schools from requiring masks among all students and staff, a move that the department says could prevent some students from safely attending school.
“It’s simply unacceptable that state leaders are putting politics over the health and education of the students they took an oath to serve,” Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said in a statement. “The department will fight to protect every student’s right to access in-person learning safely.”
It marks a sharp escalation in the Biden administration’s battle with Republican states that say wearing masks should be a personal choice. President Joe Biden last week asked Cardona to explore possible legal action, prompting the department to examine whether the policies could amount to civil rights violations.
If the investigations determine that the state mask bans have discriminated against students with disabilities, it could lead to sanctions including a loss of federal education funding.
The department said it has not opened investigations in other states where mask bans have been overturned by courts or are not being enforced, including in Florida, Texas, Arkansas and Arizona. But the agency said it is “closely monitoring” those states and is prepared to take action if necessary.
The investigations aim to determine whether state mask bans amount to a violation of students’ right to a free, public education. The department is raising concerns that, in areas with high COVID-19 transmissions, the bans could discriminate against students who are at heightened risk for severe illness.
The department is launching the investigations at its own discretion and not in response to complaints from parents, but Cardona said families have raised concerns that mask bans could put children with disabilities or health conditions at risk.
None of this is even in response to anything. This is just more federal overreach from the Biden Regime, and they want to hijack every aspect of public education.
If the jab works, why do we need masks?
Somehow in today’s world, allowing the choice to wear a mask violates the right to free education.
How upside down is our country when *NOT FORCING* American citizens to wear masks is now considered a potential civil rights violation?
In a sane world, the Justice Department would be suing states with mask mandates for civil rights violations. https://t.co/RAR6hjxV3E
— Sean Parnell (@SeanParnellUSA) August 30, 2021
Allowing medical freedom equates to playing politics, but suffocating children with masks and virtue signaling is public service.
The department will continue to monitor other Republican states that may fall out of line.