Parents angry about vaccine rules pull hundreds of kids from SLO County schools
San Luis Obispo County parents on Monday protested a recent California school COVID-19 vaccine mandate by pulling hundreds of students out of classrooms — joining a series of statewide walkouts against the shot requirement.
Local parents organized the walkouts as a stand against Gov. Gavin Newsom’s order requiring all California students to get vaccinated against COVID-19 once the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) fully approves shots for different age groups.
Newsom’s Oct. 1 order would take effect during the school term following the vaccine’s full approval, starting with students in grades seven through 12, followed by those in kindergarten through sixth grade.
The FDA in August fully approved the Pfizer vaccine for adults and teenagers 16 and older. The agency has also made the Pfizer vaccine available to teens and children ages 12 to 15 under an emergency use authorization, but it hasn’t yet fully approved it for those under 16.
Even though the FDA has fully authorized the vaccine for older teens, Newsom’s order doesn’t require them to get vaccinated until the agency approves the shot for middle school-age students.
“The state already requires that students are vaccinated against viruses that cause measles, mumps, and rubella — there’s no reason why we wouldn’t do the same for COVID-19,” Newsom said in his announcement. “Today’s measure, just like our first-in-the-nation school masking and staff vaccination requirements, is about protecting our children and school staff, and keeping them in the classroom.”
“Vaccines work,” Newsom added. “It’s why California leads the country in preventing school closures and has the lowest case rates. We encourage other states to follow our lead to keep our kids safe and prevent the spread of COVID-19.”
Statewide anti-vaccine walkout hits SLO County
It’s unclear exactly how many San Luis Obispo County students didn’t attend classes on Monday as a result of the walkout, but some districts had many empty desks.
Paso Robles Joint Unified School District saw 1,780 absences — meaning about 27% of the district’s 6,567 students were not in class, said Jennifer Gaviola, deputy superintendent. About 760 students are absent from school on an average day, Gaviola said.
Atascadero Unified School District had an absenteeism rate 20% to 25% higher than normal, said Stacey Phillips, executive assistant to the superintendent.
In the South County, Lucia Mar Unified School District attendance “was down slightly,” said Amy Jacobs, a district spokeswoman.
San Luis Coastal Unified School District saw 103 absences related to the vaccine mandate protest — meaning roughly 1.3% of students were missing from school, said Eric Prater, superintendent.
Struggling to maintain instruction during the COVID-19 pandemic has been a major problem for county schools, as students who test positive for the virus must quarantine at home and miss in-person classes. Countywide, schools have seen 876 COVID-19 cases during the 2021-22 academic year — 778 of which have involved students, and 98 of which have involved staff members — as of Oct. 11, according to a Tribune database.
Hundreds protest school vaccine mandates in SLO
But some parents resent what they see as government intrusion into their healthcare choices. On Monday, hundreds of parents and children protested the vaccine rules outside the San Luis Obispo County Public Health Department along Johnson Avenue in San Luis Obispo.
The parents rang cowbells and held signs with messages including “My child, my choice” and “The pharma cartel doesn’t care about our children.”
The demonstration drew members of Moms for Liberty, a conservative organization that’s been involved in local anti-mask protests at school board meetings.
Jennifer Grinager, San Luis Obispo County chapter chair, said she thinks the government should not be telling people they must get vaccinated, that it should be a “decision between them and their doctor.”
“If people want to take this vaccine, they should be able to do that,” Grinager said. “But they need to know the risks. They need to be given informed consent, and that’s not happening in many cases. And we want people to have that informed consent and be able to make an educated decision.”
This story was originally published October 18, 2021 at 3:51 PM.
