More than a thousand parents, students and school staff crowded the west lawn of the state Capitol on Monday morning in protest of California’s upcoming COVID-19 vaccination mandate for eligible K-12 students.
The mandate, which Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Oct. 1, is the first of its kind in the United States — requiring all public and private school students to receive the vaccine when the U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorizes full approval of the shots for their age groups. The state is allowing personal belief exemptions.
Parents, children, teachers and organizers crowded the lawn and steps of the Capitol in downtown Sacramento, some holding signs that read, “I will not co-parent with the government.” One parent carried a pole with the state flag upside down. Rally speakers like Parent Union’s Celeste Fiehler of Coachella attended the protest demanding a voice at the table, objecting to the state’s executive decision.
Organizers Amber Faddis and Tess Van Dusen, both Placer County mothers, organized the rally through Facebook. The response on social media, which encouraged children to stay home from school, resonated with thousands of parents who liked and shared the campaign.
“We both trust you to protect your children,” Van Dusen said to the cheering crowd of more than 1,000 people. “We are here because you deserve that right. If you choose the vaccine, we stand with you. If you choose not to vaccinate, we stand with you.”
Speakers at the rally called on attendees to reach out to their local school districts to oppose the mandate. But many school boards have already announced their plans to comply. The California Schools Board Association announced it welcomed the state’s decision to add the COVID-19 vaccine to the list of already existing vaccine requirements in the state.
“California requires a more comprehensive strategy that frees local school boards from the need to act as de facto public health officials,” read a statement from CSBA President Dr. Susan Heredia in response to Newsom’s announcement. “Those decisions are better left to people at the state level who are designated to perform public health functions. In addition, a statewide standard for student vaccinations may help defuse some of the unlawful behavior directed at school board trustees by those who oppose local mandates.”
Parents consider their options
Lisa La Torre of Loomis brought her three children to the rally because she believes everyone should have a choice to be vaccinated or not.
“We should be able to obtain a free and fair education.” she said, adding that if the mandate goes into effect, she plans to home-school her children, who are currently in fourth, eighth and 9th grades. The long-term plan, she said, is to leave the state — possibly to North or South Carolina.
“We’ve been on the fence as business owners,” La Torre said. “But the mandate is the cherry on top.”
Karina Ramirez of Modesto drove an hour and a half to attend the rally with her children Alexia, 9, and Adrian, 8. Ramirez became tearful thinking about their options. She also plans to home-school. But as owners of a family restaurant, leaving the state is not that easy, she said.
“We can’t leave the rest of the family,” she said. “It’s heartbreaking, because we live in America. As adults, we can make our own decisions, but our children cannot.”
Both La Torre and Ramirez cited concerns that there was not enough research done on COVID-19 vaccines for adolescents. Multiple vaccines for coronaviruses began decades ago, particularly during the SARS outbreak nearly 20 years ago.
Districts begin reporting absences
It’s unclear how many students participated in the related walkout. Some parents told The Sacramento Bee they noticed reduced traffic around their neighborhood schools, indicating how many families chose to keep their children at home on Monday.
Many school districts will have final official numbers on absences the following day, but those absences largely do not indicate why a child did not attend classes.
Both Natomas Unified and Elk Grove Unified school district officials said there was nothing different about Monday’s attendance numbers. Rocklin Unified School District students had Monday off as a professional learning day for teachers.
More than 4,600 students were marked absent across San Juan Unified School District for one or more class periods Monday for a variety of reasons, according to the district. That’s about 600 more absences than the previous Monday. The district loses about $76 a day for each student absence.
Mia Yang-Foster, an Elk Grove Unified parent of three, took her two children and niece to the rally. Yang-Foster, who is fully vaccinated, said she didn’t feel comfortable vaccinating her 11-year-old and 9-year-old because she left there was a lack of long-term data on the vaccine.
“My husband has been battling health issues since he got the final dose of the Moderna back in June,” she said. “It has been stressful on the family, and I prefer to wait for more data before injecting my children with this vaccine.
“Aside from these reasons, I simply believe in the freedom to choose our own medical procedures.”
Many local parents support the mandate
Brittany Paiz, a Sacramento mother, said she chose to send her students to school.
“There are so many vaccine that our kids have to have already to go to school,” she told The Sacramento Bee. “Does it make a difference with one more?”
Ateliah Ruhl, a Sacramento parent said she sent her children to campus because “this is an adult fight.”
“The kids missed an entire year and then some, and they’re still missing a ton of school being out sick due to covid protocols,” Ruhl said. “It’s senseless to pull them out intentionally. The government already knows what they’ll lose if kids aren’t in school. You don’t need to show them.”
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you folks in californiastan voted for this treatment and now you are getting it shoved hard!
You lay down with Democrat dogs, you wake up with fleas.
The Traitorous socialist Democrat Party has shown their objectives.
The “Socialist Democrat Party State” political officers, Gestapo, Woke and Cancel Culture are just getting started.
You will obey, be loyal and support the “Socialist Democrat Party State” or you will be classified as
“Enemies of the State”.
You people recently had the chance to get rid of this a**.
Exactly. IF THEY REALLY DIDN’T want this, perhaps they should HAVE VOTED TO recall his sorry butt.
After the recall you cannot stop him. You loose California.
Until THE PEOPLE of California and the rest of the country quash the Democrat Party’s ability to corrupt and steal recall elections and government elections, they can protest all they want, expending their precious money, votes and life force on deals already done and sealed in the same smoke-filled basements that put corrupt unqualified corrupt guys like Newsom and Biden into power in the first place, unless something of substance is not soon done to turn the tide of internal American political corruption WE THE PEOPLE will all be changed into dependent children-in-adult-bodies forced by the new government parents ours get replaced with, to dance to the mournful tunes of socialism and the social dependency that will be enforced by a Democrat party time machine where it’s out with the peaceful American Eloi and in with the Democrat menacing Morlocks.
First it was Roe v Wade to kill our children. Now it is the CCP virus vaccine to kill our children that survived Roe v Wade. A new study from Taiwan showed more died from the vaccine than from the virus. My children are not Ginny Pigs or Lab Rats, experiment on your own kids!!
To the left, that’s ALL we are.. lab rats for what ever THEY WANT.
This is no experiment on our kids, but planned political pollution of American strength, with a script created long before the Chinese released it, and the COVID, with the American Media and Biden traitors all paid before hand to fall in line. Biden slipped his tongue once before the election that he would not finish his term, but hand it over to Kamala in time to establish another Socialist/Commie power base in time to steal the next election. California is already lined up for an easy win with mail in ballots sent to everyone capable of getting their mail stolen, or ballot corrupted, or vote bought in votes of more ways to pay people to stay home and do nothing. Biden’s family corrupted Chinese and Ukrainian money laundering deals have given foreigner power to pull his strings. He is already bought and paid for and there are plenty more in Congress, and I suspect the military in the same positions to be blackmailed into Chinese, Russian or IRanian submission. Just how much did the Bidens get laundered back for the billions in military equipment and technology left in Afghanistan now getting copied and reporduced in China to be used against us? Follow the money if anyone is left in the FBI or CIA who cares about saving this nation.
” “We should be able to obtain a free and fair education.” she said, adding that if the mandate goes into effect, she plans to home-school her children, who are currently in fourth, eighth and 9th grades.”
Home schooling is the closest you will ever get to FREE education. (Public education in the United States certainly is NOT “free”. ) Home schooling the the best, perhaps the only, way to ensure that your kids are getting the education you want them to have.
AND when even IF YOU DO home school the kids, YOU STILL PAY FOR public education (Via property taxes), ITS NOT A “Free education!”
I have empathy for you people in California, however, you either voted for this elitist imbecile, or you stood by and did nothing!
If you read the ‘approval’ letters for the vaccines you’ll realize that all the FDA did was OK the manufacturers to market the vaccines under trade names. The FDA is requiring them to carry on further research into the ongoing side effects and other issues with the vaccine. The areas they are having them research are significant. It is time to admit that the vaccines are experimental and that we have no idea what the long term ramifications of them are.
Parents, and everyone, should have the right to decide if they want to get the vaccine or not. Being forced, and yes telling parents that without it their kids can’t go to school is forcing, is not acceptable.
As someone who DID NOT vote for this (or any Democrat) lunatic, and who DID vote to recall him, and as the grandfather of a 5 year old (who was born at only 23 weeks gestation), I’ll be damned if I’ll let ANYONE shove this experimental vaccine into her arm!
Unless, of course, you can show me the SCIENTIFIC STUDIES showing the safety and efficacy of this vaccine on 5 year olds, who were born at 23 weeks gestation!
I’d rather home school her (better yet, move out of state)!
First of all we need to stop playing the game by Leftist rules and calling this chemical poop storm a vaccine. It is NOT a vaccine.
NO ITS NOT… Till it actually gives one IMMUNITY from catching covid, IT IS NOT legally a vaccine!
Show me the results of the second year animal clinical trials. Oh, that’s right, there were NO animal clinical trials. The communist liberals want your children and grandchildren to be the “animal” trials. Any parent who allows this is too stupid to have custody of a dog, let alone children.