In response to West’s announcement, several students voiced their opinions in opposition to the protest and to the anti-mask argument in general.

Senior Emily O’Connor was surprised that students were questioning the mask mandates since various mask mandates have been in effect all across the U.S since April 3, 2020.

“It seemed silly to even question still wearing masks, because we’ve been dealing with it for so long. Even though it is frustrating, there’s so much research that shows people are still getting really sick,” O’Connor said. 

Senior Lilly Blanton agrees that COVID-19 is an ongoing issue, and masks help to mitigate the problem. 

“I think [masks are] something that are very important and that help protect everyone because COVID-19 is a very important thing that’s still going on. We’re still in the middle of a global pandemic. There are still people dying every day from COVID. There are even new variants being discovered, so masks are so important,” Blanton said.

O’Connor believes that the population should listen first to state mandates and science, instead of opinions.

“We’re all high schoolers. Not very many people are doing their own research. I think the mandates are backed by science. Teenagers in high school probably don’t know more than the state representatives that are keeping track of [COVID-19] and making the mandates,” O’Connor said.

There is a lot of uncertainty regarding the next stages of the pandemic as new variants arise, such as the omicron variant which has been tracked in 17 states. Though masks were recently found to protect both the wearer and people in their proximity, senior Jack Gillespie is unsure of how COVID-19 will unfold.

“I think everyone’s sick of wearing masks, but we’ve just got to put up with it. I think [the pandemic] could honestly just go either way, depending on how many precautions people take. If people just don’t care, then it’ll probably get worse. But, if everyone is vigilant, then it’s probably going to get better,” Gillespie said. “Wearing masks isn’t to protect you. It’s to protect other people who could get sick from it because masks aren’t very effective at protecting the wearer. They’re about stopping the wearer from spreading [COVID-19].”

O’Connor feels her peers are not taking the pandemic seriously, and would advise against participating in the protest.

“[I would tell those participating in the Dec. 6 protest] to think outside of themselves and think about the people around them, especially people who live with their parents or with their grandparents or someone who could get sick easier. [Anti-maskers] don’t know who else they could be affecting because there’s so many people outside of just themselves or their friend group,” O’Connor said. “Think outside of yourself, not everything is about you. Your health and wellness affects other people even if you don’t think it does.”