LENAWEE COUNTY, Mich. — The Lenawee County Board of Health hosted a special meeting to discuss how to control and prevent COVID-19 in schools. There was a motion to decide if the board should recommend enforcing a mask mandate.
Health officials say COVID-19 cases are rising among children as they head back to school.
Yet some school officials, parents and students don't agree with a potential mandate.
During the meeting's public comment section, the room packed with around 100 people - mostly un-masked - spoke either for or against masking in schools.
Community member Bill Swift explained that he works in Dexter and lives in Tecumseh. He wanted to hear what residents and the county board had to say about the mask issue.
"The people here in this community, for whatever reason, are willing to put the health and safety of other people's children at risk rather than having their kids wear a mask," Swift said.
Bethany Teague, a mother who homeschools her children, said it was important to attend this meeting because she's a member of Stand Up Lenawee County. It's an organization that's for people making their own choices on masks and vaccines.
"Mandating mask is not freedom. Mandating shots is not freedom. And we want to maintain freedom in America," Teague explained.
WTOL 11 was told that before our cameras started rolling, things got heated and tense.
"I could do without the threats and intimidation of our officials, and when I spoke, people were trying to speak the whole time I was talking!" Swift exclaimed.
Teague said getting upset while refusing to listen or come to a compromise fixes nothing.
"We're not advocating that there is not a virus. We're advocating for choice and for freedom for people. And, that part is what needs to be discussed between both sides," Teague said.
Even though it was standing room only, the board made sure to go row by row, which allowed those seated to come up, speaker, after speaker, after speaker, with a three-minute time limit and voice their opinion.
"The only thing that we're asking is that we get a choice. We're going over the CDC, the NIH, where there's over 46 studies proving the non-effectiveness of masks. So we just want a choice," Teague said.
This special meeting was hosted with the aim of potentially having a recommendation for the health officials, but Swift isn't holding his breath.
"I don't anticipate that it would be a unanimous vote no matter what. Because I feel like there are some people on that have probably already made up their minds," Swift said.
Ultimately, after the public comment had ended, the board voted not to make a recommendation on a mask mandate at this meeting.
However, WTOL 11 was told there will likely be a decision on whether a recommendation will be made at next week's board meeting.