After a year of online school and the following year being mask-mandatory, Burlingame students have been deprived of many critical social interactions school typically provides. Now prom, what should have been the first example of progress in our school this school year, has been made mask mandatory aswell.

While this is no surprise after watching the course numerous school board meetings focused on masking guidelines, this cannot be tolerated.

Principal Paul Belzer and the Burlingame administration had publicly recommended to the school board that SMUHSD high schools should no longer require masks in classrooms, due to plummeting case numbers across the country and increased vaccinations within our local area. However, when given the opportunity to make the decision themselves, the BHS administration folded and decided to follow the board and ignore statewide health regulations. Apparently, the state and the CDC are only trustworthy when enforcing mandates but not trustworthy when attempting to bring back our normal lives.

There is no excuse for this behavior. Prom is a voluntary event - those who are immunocompromised and more susceptible to negative COVID effects will not be unwillingly exposed. Students who bought tickets to this event did so knowingly and accepted any possible risks that come with attendance. 

Now is not the time to back away from mask-optional recommendations. By signing this petition, you are making the voice of the student body heard and calling on the Burlingame administration to stay away from hypocrisy. Let's make prom a night of progress and fun; not a night of regression and deception.