Florida school board finally drops mask mandate after suspending 8-year-old 38 times for violations

For months, 8-year-old Fiona Lashells did not wear a mask to school, even though it had been mandated by her local school board.
Featured ImageFiona Lashells

The School District of Palm Beach County has dropped its mask mandate. The district had previously suspended a second grader 38 times for violating the mandate. She may have to repeat the grade.

Fiona Lashells is a student in Palm Beach County who just turned 8 years old. She took a stand against a school board policy that she believed was wrong. For months she did not wear a mask to school, even though it had been mandated by her local school board. The litany of suspensions she has been handed is available at a website her mother created outlining the experience.

At a school board event on September 22, 2021, Fiona told the board members that being suspended is “not going to change” her mind, that she still has “the right not to wear a mask,” and that it is “not fair” that she is “getting punished because … the school board is not following the law.”

She also told the school board that she hoped “they all go to jail” for “doing this” to her.

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