I am a student at Montgomery County Community College Blue Bell Campus. I love the faculty, staff, students, and everyone else in the community. I wish nothing more than for everyone to be safe, happy, and at peace with themselves, but I do not agree that masks should be mandated, and I believe if mask mandates aren't stopped there will be vaccine mandates. Covering your airholes is depriving your body of air, for some people that is not an option to cover their airholes. Others simply may not want to cover the holes that allow them to breathe. This is their choice. If this is not stopped now there will be a vaccine mandate. There are plenty of reasons not to take a vaccine. Some include those who follow vegan diets, those on certain medication, people concerned about long term side effects, religious reasons, and personal reasons. Mandates are authoritarian, and nobody needs security, or their professor telling them to put on a mask. Let people be. If you don't feel safe, wear a mask and get vaccinated. Don't bully others who choose different. I learned in school, it's not nice to bully others, even if they do something we don't agree with. If you don't agree with whats going on the time is now to speak up. You can sign this petition anonymously. I must speak before the mask mandates turn into vaccine mandates. We ended Jim Crow Laws and race discrimination because it is wrong to discriminate. I wouldn't tell someone they couldn't come to school because of the color of their skin. I wouldn't tell someone they wouldn't be able to come to school because they were unvaccinated or didn't wear a mask. Everyone knows the risk of coming to school, nobody has the right to force anything on someone who doesn't want it. Individuals don't get to make choices for everyone, especially if not everyone agrees. We are a community at Montco, and vaccinated or unvaccinated, masked or unmasked, masks and vaccines are not universal, and nobody should be bullied for having to make a decision no harder than the other. I've talked to my fellow students, some people really have trouble breathing though the masks and it can be a health hazard to cover the holes you breathe with. It is the choice of the student, staff member or anyone in Montgomery County Community College wants to wear a mask. You don't know what an individual is going through or what they got going on. Everyone is handling the situation how they feel is best for themselves, and I individually don't know whats best for any other individual. Only that individual knows whats best for themselves and they deserve that choice to do what they feel is best for themselves. Right now you can't walk into a building at Montco unless you wear a mask. It's a nuisance, but not the full reason why this page was created. If this isn't stopped now they will turn the mask mandate into a vaccine mandate. It's discrimination even if it's to protect the people of Montco, and out of health and overall safety of the community. We must not let health and safety turn authoritarian, as mandates are morally wrong, and it is bullying those who feel differently. There was a sign in college hall a year ago that said ONE MONTCO. Montco is known to be a school of unity, and MANDATES DO NOT UNIFY THEY DIVIDE. Not everybody is on the same page when it comes to Covid, and as morally correct we have to respect everyones individual choices. These aren't crazy people who don't want to wear masks or not take a vaccine, they are people who have made these decisions based on their own experiences and at their own discretion. The CDC and FDA have said you have less risk of deadly Covid symptoms when vaccinated. It is one of the only available treatments, not a cure all. You can still get Covid even if your vaccinated and people are still dying of Covid after vaccinations. We have all been through alot during this past year, and many of us are having trouble coping with their environment. One thing to note, the CDC and FDA has said the vaccine is safe and effective. Effective does not mean you are protected from Covid and effective doesn’t mean you won't die of Covid. There have been fully vaccinated sports teams that still have breakout cases and cancel games because of it. There are still covid deaths from fully vaccinated people. Now there is a 3rd vaccine from Pfizer as the first 2 may not have been strong enough or last long enough. It is every individuals right to choose for themselves, whether they wear a mask, or take a vaccine. I don't blame someone for not wanting to take the vaccine, it is the fastest any vaccine has ever come to market and people are skeptical of its long term side effects as an mRNA vaccine has NEVER been tested on wide scale population. Nobody at this moment, knows the longterm side effects of these vaccines. We hope there are not, but do not know for sure if there are any long term side effects. That alone is a logical reason why someone would not want to take it. These people aren’t crazy, just doing what they feel is best for themselves. We need to end mask mandates before they turn into vaccine mandates. This is serious stuff and everyone has the right to choose what they feel is best for themselves, and without the authoritarian pressure of a threatening authority.