Parents protested across the state Wednesday, for the “Unmask our Kids,” rally.
The rallies calling for mandates to end and choice to begin. “Parents should have the choice of what their children wear on their face,” said Melissa Madison, parent and protestor at the event. On the other side, Dr. Gretchen LaSalle, a family physician with MultiCare, said that masks are one of the only tools to prevent kids under 12 from getting COVID. She said while the original strain of COVID-19 wasn’t really impacting kids the delta variant is: “We are seeing more and more get sick and end up in the hospital – some are dying,” LaSalle said. Besides masking, Dr. Lasalle said that children rely on others around them getting vaccinated for protection. That’s why she says those age 12-17 are crucial people to get vaccinated. But she added that vaccines for kids under 12 could be on the way, she said Pfizer is planning on asking for emergency use authorization for the vaccine for kids 5-11. And by the end of the year children as young as two could be eligible. But, for Central Valley mom, Madison, she said eligibility or not– she wants any decision about her child, to be made by her. “My biggest thing is parents’ rights,” she said.
