Staying safe should be a right, not something that the government dictates.

My name is William Hu, a senior at Boston Latin School. Over the past few weeks, I've been a first-hand witness to surging COVID cases in my school community as well as in my local community. Just before winter break began on December 23rd, 2021, my senior class consisting of 370 students alone had over 30 confirmed COVID-cases. Even over the holiday break, it became a common occurrence to see fellow peers post on social media saying that they tested positive for COVID-19. To expand further on these alarming statistics, on January 4th, over 1000 Boston Public School teachers and staff members were absent due to COVID-19. 

This is only the tip of the iceberg. Across Massachusetts, daily cases are skyrocketing. A simple Google search brings you a crystal-clear graph that shows daily cases are in the tens of thousands, and they don't seem to stop increasing. As I am writing this petition on January 4th, 31,184 new COVID cases have appeared just today. 2,221 patients were hospitalized in Massachusetts just today. Each day, COVID-19 death cases increase as well. 

Forcing students to attend in-person learning simply isn't safe. In packed conditions such as the hallway, lunchrooms, and auditoriums, and given the alarming infection rate of the new Omicron variant, schools have become a literal COVID-19 breeding ground. Students every day are testing positive all around Massachusetts, posing a significant health risk to themselves as well as their loved ones. Some schools don't even strictly enforce a mask-wearing policy. Not to forget that students often live with vulnerable loved ones, to which bringing COVID home is essentially a death sentence. 

The oppressive adamance of Governor Charlie Baker's words "We count in-person school as school" is a horrifying example of a dazed and confused education system. Schools aren't even given the option of turning remote. What is Governor Baker actively condoning here? Are school districts so engrossed in maintaining "normalcy" that they are unwilling to make a change for the health and safety of our communities?

No one is requesting a complete turn to remote learning, just an option so that kids can stay safe and still maintain their education. "In-person school" should not be the only way to learn, we figured that out last year. We are not starting at square one. 

Thank you for reading this petition, and please share it with your loved ones. Together, we can hopefully keep Massachusetts students safe.