Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R-N.C.) is accusing a local school board of subjecting students to “child abuse” by implementing a new mask mandate.
During a Buncombe, North Carolina, school board meeting on Thursday, the freshman Congressman claimed the board feared the mandate would “never withstand the scrutiny of the public.”
“I’ve witnessed swampy back-door tactics from corrupt bureaucrats in Washington, D.C., but what you have done here today puts that all to shame,” Cawthorn said.
He continued, “You have sacrificed the social, emotional, and psychological development of our children on the altar of wokeness. This school board has no right to rip personal responsibility away from the hands of its citizens. The family should always come before the government. You do not know better than the parents in my district. You do not have a right to slam down mandates upon children of Buncombe County that fly in the face of scientific reasoning.”
“The greatest threat to our children today does not come from COVID-19. It comes from woke, liberal government officials like you who think they are all-knowing and all-wise,” he added.
Finally, he urged the officials to “pay attention to the science” as he claimed that requiring students to wear masks is “nothing short of psychological child abuse.”
Watch the video below:
Madison Cawthorn crashed the Buncombe, NC School Board meeting tonight and berated the members for passing a mask mandate: “You have sacrificed the social, emotional, and psychological development of our children on the altar of wokeness.” pic.twitter.com/zWEM9Ngn7B
— Ron Filipkowski (@RonFilipkowski) August 6, 2021
Cawthorn’s comments come as the U.S. is experiencing a surge in COVID-19 cases. The country is recording an average of 100,199 new cases per day, a 119% increase from the previous 14 days.
As cases rose and the Delta variant became the dominant strain, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Rochelle Walensky recommend that “everyone in K through 12 schools wear a mask indoors, including teachers, staff, students and visitors, regardless of vaccination status.”
“Children should return to full-time in-person learning in the fall with proper prevention strategies in place,” she added.