Petition to end Mask Mandate at Western New England

What is the research? Is it peer reviewed? What are your credible sources?

So where is your research? Where are the peer reviewed articles? I understand you wanting to ask why but it isn't up to WNE, the City of Springfield made the mandate and WNE is complying with the law. Bring your comments to the city if you have an issue.

I would rather people not die over seeing others smile. Thanks but no.

The City of Springfield is requiring them. Check the most recent Covid-19 Update for that information

masks do not work pal

Masks do not work. This is the best post ever made on WNE.edu. Chase let me know if you ever want to get lunch

Masks don't work

Broski, do you have any scientific proof masks work?

Please consult the following as evidence that your claim -- "the CDC itself has concluded that mask mandates don't significantly alter transmission rates" -- is false. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/science/science-briefs/masking-science-sars-cov2.html?CDC_AA_refVal=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cdc.gov%2Fcoronavirus%2F2019-ncov%2Fmore%2Fmasking-science-sars-cov2.html https://www.healthaffairs.org/doi/10.1377/hlthaff.2020.00818

I hope the university has the decency to understand and respect the some of us are taking, whether or not it influences its policies. The university has already mandated vaccinations for the vast majority of community members, yet masking is required for the entirety of the semester, as it is indefinitely in many cities and towns in MA right now. To my knowledge, the risk of infection and especially serious illness (i.e., requiring hospitalization) is considerably low for most individuals. While I understand the university's desire to limit its liability and protect its students and employees, and acknowledge the argument that not all community members can or wish to get the vaccine, the reality is that most people who want the vaccine have received it, and it seems to be doing a pretty good job. Statewide, confirmed cases in the last two weeks account for less than half a percent of the population, and a number of persons equal to only about 0.6% of those confirmed cases died. While obviously any deaths from this disease are tragic, and without trivializing the 138 deaths I'm referring to, that number is equivalent to about 0.002% of the state population. I can't speak to the claim about the effectiveness or lack thereof of masking that Chase has made, but clearly, COVID is not the imminent danger it once was. The vaccine is not a guarantee of immunity and there will undoubtedly be some risks, and of course any infections and deaths are a problem, but we are in a far better place than we were a year or so ago. If you don't have the vaccine and can get it, I urge you to do so. If you want to wear a mask to further protect yourself, then continue to at your own discretion. But with regard to ongoing policies within our university and our communities at large, we need to decide when enough is enough. Anecdotally, most people I interact with regularly seem to think returning to an ordinary way of life in which we can be comfortable and interact properly is well worth t

Came for the comments

Screw these masks they don't even do anything

The emergency response team has failed to enact policies that are in line with the basic scientific facts at hand

It is one thing to ask the question of when will the pandemic end, we are all asking that every single day. No one wants to be in this situation. Where turns to be a horrible thing is when we ignore the facts and we ignore the ways that we can help protect other people around us. According to official CDC research from November 2020, counties who have implemented mask mandates have seen decreases of 6% in new cases per 100,000 people. Those without mask mandates have seen cases increase almost 100% per 100,000 people. This does not account for those in those counties not wearing masks, not wearing them properly, etc and it is also before vaccination was on a mass scale. But the point remains the same for the transmission of COVID and variants as we have unvaccinated individuals on our campus, around 14% or slightly more you can still become infected even from a fully vaccinated individual. If we take away the mask policy it is almost inevitable that those individuals will be exposed and possibly infected with COVID-19 or COVID-19 variants. This also doesn't mention the impact it could have for families, interacting with the public outside of campus, etc. So to answer you question and to be quite blunt with you, I think you and every person who signed the petition (not those who are trolling you) are horrible. Please feel free to send me that research you have done once you "have your laptop". Here is the official CDC article I refer to: https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/69/wr/mm6947e2.htm#:~:text=Wearing%20masks%20is%20a%20CDC,droplets%20by%20the%20wearer.

I’ve done lots of research I could show you plenty of things I’ve seen. Sure I may have misrepresented where that came from I was wrong however theres plenty of other points I could make if I had my laptop. While I understand what you’re saying does it really make me a horrible person for simply begging the question of when this all ends? Clearly others are interested in this mandate ending as it’s gaining some support. While I get it’s not a whole lot to ask for someone to wear a piece of cloth, if there is evidence to suggest it doesn’t matter whether or not it’s worn wouldn’t you say that should be considered?

ALSO NOT TO MENTION IT IS NOT PEER REVIEWED!!! Meaning that all of the information presented in the findings has not been confirmed by anyone else in the field other than these two individuals! For such strong feelings on this, you clearly Googled "why masks don't work" and picked the first article that you saw.

Chase, It is nice to see someone stand up for something, I appreciate you taking the time to put all of this together and state your opinion on how we should endanger certain populations of our school just so you don't have to wear a mask or follow school guidelines. I can only imagine how hard that must be for you. You probably spent more time and energy making all of this than it takes to put on a mask for a few hours a day. It is apparent that the only efforts you wish to put in are those centered around yourself, we are not asking you for much other than to try to keep our campus as safe as possible. Your ignorance is the only thing that's going to show in the end of this. I am at a loss for words. The extent people like yourself will go to in order to go against policies that can save lives and help more than just yourself is baffling. Does a mask truly bother you that much? Are you incapable of wearing one? I truly am sorry for what happened to your brother. That is something that no one should ever experience. But this is not about a vaccine; it is a mask. A mask that we must wear in order to protect those who cannot receive the vaccine for various reasons or do not wish to do so. We cannot put the 8% of students and another 6% of staff at higher risk just so the majority can “live free”. The school is not forcing individuals like yourself to be here. Going to this specific college is not forced upon you and you are free to leave whenever you would like to do so. Also, the CDC never stated the information that you are presenting as your main argument. The article that you are referring to was written by two professors, one of biology and the other of biochemistry. While they both may be qualified individuals, they are most certainly not the CDC. Please check your sources before spreading misinformation to our student body. Again, the CDC did not publish this information, it was published through an independent study.

I was all for the masks originally my mom is a nurse but there’s plenty of research to suggest they aren’t necessary I can show you that it is indeed credible if you actually want to have genuine conversation. I’d be glad to hear you out but I think you should consider the other side. Also have if you haven’t noticed most staff & faculty won’t even wear a mask unless they happen to have someone in their sight. At what point is it for show rather than to stop the spread.

Goal is to have mask mandates lifted and give unvaccinated individuals the right to choose whether to wear masks or not. Thanks for the input. Spread the word.

There is a mask mandate in Springfield right now. It is not a state-wide decision to have to wear masks, with variants of COVID spiking it is county to county and even city to city to make the decision to wear masks. Springfield being one of those cities.