Virginia governor responds to school boards challenging mask-optional executive order

Newly elected Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) had strong words for the school boards who are challenging his executive order that makes school mask mandates for children optional.

Youngkin was a guest on a conservative talk radio show on Monday, a forum he used to make clear that school districts “aren’t recognizing the rights of parents today.”

“And oh, by the way, they haven’t been recognizing the rights of parents all along. So I’m not surprised at all to hear these reactions from school boards that have consistently prioritized bureaucrats and politicians over the rights of parents,” Youngkin told host John Fredericks.

Youngkin removed mask mandates in schools with one of the 11 executive actions he signed after being sworn into office on Saturday. He also banned the teaching of critical race theory, the controversial framework that explains inequality as a conflict between racial groups.

The interview came after seven Virginia school boards filed a lawsuit against the executive order. They argue Youngkin’s order violates a section of the state constitution that says, “The supervision of schools in each school division shall be vested in a school board.”

“Without today’s action, school boards are placed in a legally untenable position — faced with an executive order that is in conflict with the constitution and state law. Today’s action is not politically motivated,” the school boards said in a statement.

Youngkin projected confidence in his executive order, telling Fredericks, “What I’m telling parents today is, trust the legal process… love your neighbor... [and] listen to your principle." 

Evidence has shown that schools are not COVID hotspots, at least before omicron. The new, highly contagious variant has forced many institutions to reimplement guidelines that had been relaxed as the delta wave passed.