Washington Post: We need to talk about masks in schools and exit ramps from pandemic regulations

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When Stacey Abrams posed for photos in a Georgia elementary school classroom last week, the Democratic candidate for governor didn’t know she was about to unite two raging camps: parents angry over pandemic protections in schools, which are often stricter than those in adult life; and people losing patience with covid-era protections entirely.

Fury poured forth from all directions at images of Abrams smiling amid masked students and staff. This was merely the latest viral incident with unmasked pols: California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) and Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti (D) were pilloried for taking maskless photos last month at an NFL game. (Garcetti’s nonsensical claim that he held his breath for the pic and therefore couldn’t catch covid only fueled the outrage.)

Instead of engaging in the usual tut-tutting over hypocrisy, let’s all thank these do-as-I-say-not-as-I-do politicians. They have, quite inadvertently, created an opening for an overdue conversation about returning to normalcy. The issue is not simply how to reopen safely. Democrats’ political fortunes are at stake as well.

We’ve come a long way since March 2020. Vaccines and treatment advances have downgraded the coronavirus threat. For most vaccinated people, covid would be a manageable illness. Little surprise that recent polls show Americans are simultaneously impatient with pandemic safety regulations and conflicted over what’s next. An Axios and Ipsos survey released Tuesday found the public almost evenly divided among “drop all mandates and requirements, keep some, keep most, or add even more.”

Political polarization further complicates things. A Monmouth University survey last month found that a large majority of Americans agree with the statement “It’s time we accept that Covid is here to stay and we just need to get on with our lives.” But — and this is a big “but” — it also found that a majority of Democrats want restrictions to continue.

This disconnect is behind the herky-jerky changes rolling out nationwide. States are relaxing covid rules — with a major asterisk.

Consider: California said this week it would end masking requirements for many public indoor settings but promised only to review school guidelines. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) is ending indoor mask mandates but reassessing school rules after a scheduled break this month. New Jersey’s mask mandate is ending in K-12 public classrooms, but local districts have latitude to create their own rules.

The result is that some school districts have stricter mandates than their surrounding regions do. Newark, New Jersey’s largest school district, has said its mask mandates will remain in place even after the state’s mandate expires. Los Angeles schools recently moved to ban cloth masks, permitting only medical-grade masks.

In other words, children — who are among those least at risk from covid — are being held to tougher standards than most adults. This absurdity is rubbing many parents the wrong way — and reminding them that in many blue-state strongholds, bars and restaurants were allowed to reopen for business even as their kids’ schooling remained remote. The frustration was succinctly summed up in one recent tweet: “I would like someone to explain a) why they believe it’s now safe for adults to take off masks at work all day but not for kids to take off masks at school all day.”

There are, of course, substantive issues with masks. Young children need to see faces to learn to read expressions and cues. Masks also inhibit conversation and socializing, activities vital for older kids.

But Democrats should also see the political disaster brewing in their midst. Parental frustrations helped propel Glenn Youngkin to victory in Virginia last year, and Republicans are moving to press their new advantage.

The conservative State Government Leadership Foundation released a commercial last week featuring images of unhappy children, isolated at home or masked in schools, and scenes of happy, partying mask-free adults. “Democrats are putting kids last,” the ad reads.

As of now, that’s right.

The longer this split situation with schools and masks continues to fester, the more likely it is to harm Democrats.

Stacey Abrams, who supports continued mask mandates, wasn’t wrong when she responded to Republican critics in part by pointing out that Republicans have “failed records” of protecting Georgians during the pandemic. Abrams wore a mask in that classroom before she posed with the kids, and she apologized, but it’s the pictures that will stick. If politicians aren’t consistently following pandemic regulations — and they are not — they need to stop attempting to enforce them on others. Exit ramps are needed for everyone, including school kids. If Democrats don’t take steps to provide them, many voters will no doubt turn to candidates who will.