‘Health care freedom’: Northland parents sue to block Kansas City school mask order
A nonprofit group representing Northland parents is asking a federal court to block Kansas City’s new mask order for schools.
The Northland Parent Association — which claims to be made up of hundreds of families and other taxpayers in Clay and Platte counties — filed an expedited motion on Thursday to preclude enforcement of the mandate, in an ongoing federal lawsuit. The group previously filed an injunction to prevent municipalities and seven districts in the Northland from enforcing their mask mandates on schoolchildren.
“The Northland Parent Association will continue to defend the bodily autonomy of our children, our parental rights, and we will never cede our health care freedom to government officials colluding with school superintendents,” Natalie Scholl, vice president of the group, said in a statement.
The Kansas City City Council on Thursday voted 11-2 to rescind the citywide mask order, but approved keeping a mask mandate in schools. Council members Heather Hall and Brandon Ellington voted no.
The previous mask order for everyone ages 5 and older expired Thursday afternoon. Now the mandate only applies to anyone in school buildings and school buses. Mayor Quinton Lucas said the move was to ensure schools can operate as safely as possible.
The change comes as new COVID-19 cases continue to fall, and as younger children are now eligible for the vaccine. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention this week approved recommendations from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, officially authorizing the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for children 5-11.
The Northland parent group argues that Kansas City’s school mandate is arbitrary and not based on sufficient evidence, and that it violates constitutional rights.
“The students in masks have suffered long enough and need relief from this Court, especially when the Mask Mandate at issue is so blatantly baseless,” the group said in the motion. It asked that the court hold an evidentiary hearing and oral arguments as soon as possible.
The group alleges that the mask mandate was approved based on political motives, rather than scientific evidence.
“We will never accept the deterioration of our rights at the hands of those who should be representing us,” Scholl said.
Public health experts have urged school districts to require masks, especially as many children remain unvaccinated. Among health authorities, masks are widely seen as a reasonable step to help cut transmission of the virus while keeping public spaces open.
But mandates have been met with ongoing protests, especially in the suburbs of Kansas City. Several school board candidates ran on a platform of “parent choice” on masks and vaccines in this past week’s elections in Johnson County.
Northland Parent Association members previously said that “concerned parents and families in the Northland” are funding their efforts. A GoFundMe page started by the group has raised more than $5,200. Nearly 1,500 people follow the group’s Facebook page.
Kansas City officials did not immediately respond to The Star’s request for comment. But Lucas previously said in response to the group’s ongoing lawsuit that Kansas City’s “mask mandate helps protect students, teachers, faculty, and staff — and all of their loved ones at home — and I and the city will continue to stand by our actions, which were made to protect our children and our vulnerable friends, families and neighbors.”
“As it has been since the onset of this pandemic, my primary objective when it comes to Kansas City’s COVID-19 response is to save lives. No lawsuit will change that,” Lucas previously said. “ ... The city has crafted each set of COVID-19 guidelines based on clear, data-driven advice from health and scientific leaders from the White House and CDC down to our health department.”
The group is suing Lucas, North Kansas City Mayor Bryant DeLong and the city councils of both municipalities. The school districts included are: Excelsior Springs, Kearney, Liberty, North Kansas City, Smithville, Park Hill and Platte County.
The Kansas City school mask order is scheduled to expire just before midnight on Dec. 2.
BEHIND THE STORY
MOREWhy do health officials think masks are so important in schools?
COVID-19 spreads mainly from person to person through respiratory droplets, which travel into air when someone coughs, sneezes or talks. Masks are a simple barrier to help prevent those droplets from reaching others, so, studies show, they reduce the spread of COVID-19.
Masks are especially important in schools, public health experts say, where hundreds of people are indoors, in close contact, and children under 12 remain ineligible for the COVID-19 vaccine. Three recent studies showed school districts without universal masking policies were more likely to have COVID-19 outbreaks, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Read more by clicking the arrow in the upper right.
Which school districts still don’t have universal mask mandates?
Most Kansas City area school districts have universal mask mandates this fall.
In Kansas, most Wyandotte and Johnson County districts are requiring masks, with the majority requiring them for all grade levels. Spring Hill, though, is only mandating masks for younger students, and has left them optional for high schoolers. The district also has allowed parents to sign mask exemption forms, which require a doctor’s signature in neighboring districts.
On the Missouri side, the majority of districts are mandating masks. But the Raymore-Peculiar district and some other smaller districts in Cass County and more rural areas have made masks optional.
This story was originally published November 5, 2021 at 1:19 PM.
