I’m just getting around to reading an editorial that the Dallas Morning News published online this morning. The headline: “Abbott Needs to Let School Districts Decide Whether to Require Masks.” Yes! And then the subhead: “Until he does, districts need to adhere to the governor’s orders.” What?!
Yesterday, Dallas ISD announced that it is requiring everyone to wear masks, in defiance of Gov. Greg Abbott’s statewide ban on such mandates. The move is a big deal. The New York Times picked up the story.
So here’s what I think happened at the News. The editorial board goes, “Dang it. Now we have to write about this. We’re screwed.” The writers on the board know the DISD move is the prudent and right one. But they are afraid to look “liberal,” to take a stance “against freedom,” to alienate their older, conservative subscribers. So they tried to thread the needle: say that school districts should be allowed to keep kids safe, but they shouldn’t keep kids safe until the governor says they can do it — which he should do pronto. Man, this is like saying the speed limit on a street is unsafe, but everyone should keep driving fast until we get the signs changed.
Here is D Magazine’s official editorial on the topic:
DISD Superintendent Michael Hinojosa is showing us what leadership looks like. The CDC “recommends universal indoor masking for all teachers, staff, students, and visitors to schools, regardless of vaccination status.” Knowing that some people won’t voluntarily do what is in everyone’s best interest, he has made the right move. We applaud him for doing everything in his power to keep our kids and community safe. As for Abbott, he can pound sand.
