Parents getting Violent with Teachers over Mask Mandates

A man in Florida was arrested on Wednesday after allegedly assaulting a student who confronted him about protesting the school district’s mask mandate, marking yet another violent clash over face coverings in schools.

Dan Bauman, the father of a sophomore at Fort Lauderdale High School who had been turned away from school for refusing to wear a face covering, was approached by a student who attempted to take his phone as he was recording a video, telling him she’d “had enough,” according to CBS Miami.

Bauman responded by shoving the student and then twisting her arm “in an aggressive manner,” resulting in his arrest on charges of aggravated child abuse. Just before his arrest, Bauman argued that the mask mandate was illegal, claiming that face masks do “more harm than good,” a view rejected by the vast majority of experts.

Similar clashes over masks have occurred at schools across the United States, including an incident in an elementary school in Austin’s Eanes Independent School District, where parents reportedly removed a teacher’s mask and berated an educator for choosing to remain masked during a conversation, according to Austin NPR affiliate KUT.

While some parents have voiced opposition to mask mandates, polls indicate that most Americans support them. An Associated Press/NORC poll conducted this week found that around six in ten respondents supported mask mandates for students and teachers, although only 52% of parents of school-age children agreed. Despite this, nine US states have prohibited schools from requiring masks, with some of these orders currently facing legal challenges from parent groups. Last month, the Centers for Disease Control recommended that all students and staff wear masks while at school.