Anti-mask protestors interrupted a back-to-school roundtable featuring Gov. Ned Lamont, education and public health officials in Cheshire, leading the session to end early.
The protestors are opposed to Connecticut's requirement that everyone in school buildings be masked, a response to the ongoing global pandemic. The measure will continue through at least the end of September.
About thirty minutes into the session, hecklers interrupted a comment by Acting Public Health Commissioner Dr. Deidre Gifford. The moderator, Cheshire Schools Superintendent Jeffrey Solan, asked the small crowd at Highland Elementary School for decorum.
The yelling continued, and Solan said, "This is a reflection of how we can't have civil dialogue." A few moments later, he announced an early end to the roundtable.
Gov. Lamont was led outside and around protestors to his waiting SUV, which pulled out and headed for Hartford.
“These bullying tactics will not change what we all know to be true and agreed upon by both the scientific and academic communities," says the governor's spokesman, Max Reiss. "Masks work and they help to keep our communities safe, especially young children who are not yet eligible to be vaccinated.”
In response to a question from WTIC, Supt. Solan writes, "I was disappointed that a few individuals attempted to make it difficult to disseminate important information to the broader community. Civil disagreement is welcome in Cheshire, shouting profanity in front of children is thankfully not what our community is about."