Parents and taxpayers are taking to the streets in protest as blowback against local school district mask mandates continue to spread throughout the Central Texas region.
As school districts gradually opened their doors for the 2021-22 semester, mask mandates were immediately ordered by the usual suspects, such as the Austin and Round Rock ISDs. Other Austin-area ISDs such as Leander, Pflugerville, and Lago Vista were reticient at first, with generally more conservative boards of trustees.
On Monday, Pflugerville joined the ranks of dissident local governments, followed by Leander ISD on Tuesday.
In a matter of hours, roughly 50 protesters showed up outside the Leander ISD district headquarters early this morning in Old Town Leander, hoping to catch the eye of Superintendent Dr. Bruce Gearing. One poster featured a photo of Gearing accompanied by the word "resign."
Meanwhile, Texas Atty. Gen. Ken Paxton is urging those under mask mandates to report their local school boards or other government bodies to maskmandate@oag.texas.gov. Paxton said in a press statement via Twitter:
"Governor Abbott's executive order 38 is crystal clear, and the Texas Supreme Court agrees: No governmental entity -- which includes counties, cities, and school districts -- may require mandating the COVID-19 shot, the showing of vaccine passports, COVID-19-related limitations, or mask mandates. No government in Texas may impose a mask mandate. Yet too many local officials continue to violate this law. I will sue every single local entity and local official who does. And if they continue to disobey, I will pursue additional legal sanctions."
Abbott and Paxton have each pointed to the Texas Supreme Court as the body that would decide the fate of the school district mandates.
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