Mask mandate brings out angry parents

The Shawano School District announced last week that it would be requiring masks for all students and staff at all schools after previously announcing it would only be mandatory at three of the schools one week earlier.

That brought out some angry parents to the Sept. 27 Shawano School Board meeting, with one vowing to bring a class-action suit and requiring a police officer to come stand next to the speaker.

The board held a special meeting on Sept. 24 and voted to require masks during regular school hours through the end of October. In a letter posted to the school district’s website, Superintendent Randi Anderson wrote: “The safety of our students, staff and our ability to continue face-to-face operations is at risk.”

Parents weren’t buying it, and they weren’t afraid to let the board know that, either. Nick Kleczka, a parent of three school district students who said he has lived in Shawano all of his life, told the board they took an oath to defend the Wisconsin and U.S. constitutions, but their mask mandate was, in his view, violating those documents.

“Mask mandates are involuntary,” Kleczka said. “No public official has the authority to mandate a mask. None.”

Kleczka said the board members should be brought up on charges of treason against the community, at which point, board president Michael Sleeper tried to tell him his time limit had been reached, but Kleczka said he would just speak up louder. Others in the audience chimed in and said that they would give Kleczka their time that they had requested.

“People have given me their minutes,” Kleczka said. “I have the right. I have a freedom. You will be held accountable.”

Sleeper continued to bang his gavel while Kleczka continued to speak and others yelled out that the board should let him speak. An officer with the Shawano Police Department came to where Kleczka was standing, to which he told the officer, “Bieber is OK with this. I talked to him. You can call him,” referring to Shawano County Sheriff Adam Bieber. Kleczka also claimed to have spoken with Shawano Mayor Bruce Milavitz and gotten approval to speak longer.

“My mandate is providing our children with a full ability to learn,” Kleczka said. “This is causing many health-related problems — inhaling carbon dioxide and causing severe health problems. The CDC (Centers for Disease Control) requires that masks be changed every half-hour. Is this happening?”

Kleczka also cited the psychological events on autistic children, those with speech delays and dealing with severe anxiety as a reason why masks should not be required for everyone.

“This mandate goes much deeper than what the servants claim to be just another two-week mask-wearing circus party,” Kleczka said. “We must stand against all of you criminals and your treasonous behavior and hold you accountable.”

Kleczka claimed he and “many others” would be filing class-action lawsuits against the district for the mask mandate.

Kleczka was not the only parent frustrated by the new mandate. Danelle Wudtke told the board she does not feel comfortable sending her children to school and having them wear masks for eight hours out of the day, noting that the school district required masks last school year, as well.

“This is happening again, one year later,” Wudtke said. “Do you see the coincidence? We’re going to see the same thing happening.”

Wudtke told the board that “the smiles are disappearing” from local children’s faces. She expressed concern about depression and suicide rates going up, to which the audience applauded.

“The best time in these kids’ lives is turning into a nightmare,” Wudtke said. “They can’t enjoy themselves when they’re forced to wear masks and keep their distance from others. You might as well consider school a prison.”

Wudtke added that parents should be allowed to make the decision on whether their children wear masks, not the school district.

“With you implementing this, it sounds like you don’t trust us as parents to do this task, which is really sad,” Wudtke said.

Alicia Stichman spoke to the board about the issue of having available busing within Shawano, but she noted she had an issue with masks because they cover up everyone’s faces.

“You can’t tell who is a stranger and who is not,” Stichman said.

Nathan Powell said he was not insensitive to the issues of COVID-19, noting he has lost his mother and one of his best friends to complications from the virus, but he claimed it was being used as a “fear tactic” through the mask mandate.

“The fact is that the virus is not going away, and we’re going to have to get used to it,” Powell said. “Are we going to wear masks until the next several generations graduate?”

He noted the meeting where the board approved requiring masks was held on short notice and claimed many parents didn’t know about, citing claims on social media. He also cried hypocrisy as many on the board were in the school without a mask, despite requiring it of students and staff.

“How are you going to mandate that my child is wearing one?” Powell said, garnering applause from the crowd.

He noted it does no good to require masks during school hours when folks are walking around businesses, churches and other public spaces without them.

“These kids congregate outside of school. They shop and go to church,” Powell said. “I ask you, what point is your mask mandate? To me, it’s a moot point.”

lpulaski@newmedia-wi.com