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Hundreds of families, parents, and their children lined up along Veterans Memorial Highway and assembled outside of the H. Lee Dennison Building in Hauppauge at noon today to demand the mask mandate be dropped for kids of all ages.
The rally was organized by a group of Long Island mothers who founded the Facebook group “Show Me Your Face – New York,” which has over 4,000 members.
Parents and their children held signs reading expressions like “Unmask Our Kids,” “Mask Mandates Equals Child Abuse,” and “My Child My Choice,” while organizers and guest speakers, such as 2020 New York State gubernatorial candidate Andrew Giuliani, shared their opposition to the New York State mask regulations for children in school.
“[This mask mandate] is a way to take away our individuality, our children’s individuality,” said Giuliani, who recently announced his bid for governor. “If somebody wants to wear a mask, God bless them, however the government control and the government mandates need to stop right now.”
The rally follows Tuesday’s update from the state regarding masks and children — unvaccinated children ages 2 to 5 are encouraged, but not required to wear masks at daycare or summer camps, Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s administration said.
The mask mandate for schools still remains in effect.
Earlier this week, Commack School District became the first Long Island district to no longer mandate students to wear masks, however, the district quickly reversed this measure after calls from Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s office, according to a News 12 report.
Rally attendees and speakers expressed their disapproval of children still wearing masks in school, concerns about the impacts to their well-being, and questioned the effectiveness of masks in general.
Many called on Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone and other politicians to take action and end the mask mandate for children.
Below are photos from the “Unmask Our Children” protest in Hauppauge.
