The fashion trend of wearing a face covering swept the United States of America in 2020 when COVID-19 first reared its ugly head. As the pandemic numbers have decreased, people have prepared to toss aside their face masks to collect dust like any other out-of-style accessory.
The Wake County school board met on February 25 this year to discuss the mask mandate that had been active up until that time. On that day, WRAL reported their decision that, “masks will no longer be required in Wake County, impacting Raleigh and many other cities and towns.” For schools, the board decided that a week later on March 7, masks would be deemed optional. The CDC also adjusted its recommendations for masks, informing people that masks only need to be worn out of personal preference in low-risk areas, but should definitely be worn in high-risk areas.
Currently, masks still need to be present on one’s face at airports and airplanes as well as healthcare facilities across the nation. The Washington Post suggests that—with all the government policies moving towards removing any sort of need for masks—transportation may end up being, “one of the few remaining settings in which people are required to wear masks.”
According to WRAL, other North Carolina school districts have decided to keep the requirement of face masks indoors. Districts such as Chapel Hill-Carrboro, Durham, Halifax, Northampton, and Warren have maintained their requirements with many waiting until April to vote.
Though masks have widely fallen out of popular favor, they may linger as a common facial decoration for some time, despite the relaxed guidelines sweeping the United States like a crazy virus. Controversies still surround mask-wearing, but perhaps the confidence of the nation’s government represents an omen prophesying the end of COVID-19’s reign of terror, even if it never goes away entirely.
Comments