Glenbard South and North student protest and walkout is planned for Friday

Superintendent David Larson (left and his senior cabinet (right to left) Seth Chapman, Janet Cook, Melissa Creech, Patrick McGill and Josh Chambers. | D87

By DuPage Policy Journal

Feb 10, 2022

A rally is being held to provide support for Glenbard West Students who engage in civil disobedience at the school by not wearing masks.

The student walkout will be held at Glenbard South, 3801 W. Lake Ave. at 8 .a.m., and at Glenbard North, Sherman and Sheerer streets, at 9:15 a.m.

The rally is being promoted by D34 & D225 Parents for Choice.

“Fight the unconstitutional mask mandates put in place by our school board!” a flyer announcing the protest reads.

The “Power to the People Protest” is scheduled for Friday, Feb. 11, and Monday, Feb. 14, at 8 a.m.

Anti-mask protests have popped up across the state following a downstate judge’s ruling ruling mask mandates in schools are unconstitutional.

Last Friday, Sangamon County Judge Raylene Grischow deemed Gov. J.B. Pritzker's blanket state emergency school requirements on masks and tests through the Illinois Department of Public Health "null and void" in a 30-page judgment.

“Statutory rights have attempted to be bypassed through the issuance of Executive Orders and Emergency Rules … This type of evil is exactly what the law was intended to constrain," she wrote.

Hundreds of school districts have opted to go mask-optional in the wake of the ruling.

As of press time, the number had grown to 584 out of 1,070 districts in the state.

The original order covered only the plaintiff children in the 145 school districts challenged by the lawsuit.

Many of the schools have opted to go mask-optional, citing the ruling’s liability on school employees who try to enforce a mandate the court has deemed illegal.

Students have also continued to show up to school without masks in protest, and pickets have targeted hold-out school districts.

Glenbard 87 School District serves over 8,000 students combined on the campuses of Glenbard South, North, East and West high schools.

Glenbard West High School Principal Peter Monaghan was caught on camera without a mask in the stands at a crowded Glenbard West basketball game at Wintrust Arena. However, Monaghan continues to discipline students for not wearing masks.