Not everyone — particularly teachers and some parents — is welcoming the lifting of masking requirements across the province after March break.
Newmarket parent and education advocate Shameela Shakeel, who runs a popular regional parent Facebook page, said masks help protect others.
“It is an act of solidarity, compassion and care. These are values we should be teaching our children and teens,” she told her group.
Teachers unions, including the Elementary Teachers' Federation of Ontario, are also speaking out against it.
“Lifting the mask mandate too soon may result in further disruption to in-person learning and negative impacts on the health and safety of ETFO members, students, and their families. Ontarians deserve stability and safety, not more chaos," said Ontario ETFO president Karen Brown in a news release.
The Children’s Health Coalition — made up of SickKids Hospital and other pediatric organizations — said in a news release said it would have preferred masking be kept in place at schools for two weeks after March break to assess the impact of broader reopening.
"As leaders in children’s health, we know that masking is an important layer of protection to prevent COVID-19 and has prevented widespread transmission in school settings. While there have been recent calls to remove this public health measure, now is not the time," according to the statement.
The province has lifted masking requirements for schools and most other settings as of March 21, except for public transit, health care and long-term care settings.
York Region medical officer of health Dr. Barry Pakes has said the change should wait until the end of March. Although he said the region will still encourage mask-wearing "out of consideration for others," he did not speak out against the province's decision.
"I would hope that Canadians, Ontarians and residents of York Region will keep their mask in their pocket and put it on when you need to. Please remember to be kind and considerate as we all navigate this new phase," Pakes said. "It's understandable people may have differing perspectives regarding the timing of removing the mask mandate as it will occur immediately after March break after so many families are travelling and gathering with others. The province and York Region will continue to monitor metrics and respond as appropriate.
"While most of the measures are going to be gone, we need to recognize this does not mean the end of COVID-19," Pakes added.
However, many residents are welcoming the lifting restrictions, including parents and others who say many are not following current masking rules during events.
“Wear a mask if you are nervous. But really, masks or not, life is going back to normal,” one local commenter said on social media.
York Region school boards have not yet indicated how they will respond to the changes, which also indicates the end of cohorting and on-site screening. York Region District School Board said they would support all students as the changes come into place.
"We appreciate that students and families may have mixed reactions to this announcement. Our educators will continue to support student well-being as these changes are implemented, and work to ensure all of our students feel safe, welcome and supported," the board said. "Please also be assured that we will continue to consult with public health to ensure we are taking all appropriate measures to protect the health and safety of our students, staff members and families."
York Catholic District School Board said it would share information soon about the announcement with its community.
Newmarket mother Samantha Denuzzo, who has refused to get a COVID-19 vaccine for herself or her family, is welcoming the "long overdue" lifting of the mask mandate.
But she said the impact of the rule changes on her life will be minimal, as she had already put her kids into private education. She said her family has refused to wear masks or visit anywhere requiring a vaccine passport throughout the pandemic. She said they refuse to return to any businesses that followed those rules, even now that they are ending.
Denuzzo said their fight is not over. She said she and like-minded individuals want to keep fighting to get laws passed so that mandates like those in the pandemic cannot happen again.
“We need to do better for our children,” she said.
