Parents Beat Up School Officer Over COVID Vax Policy
Three parents held down and beat up a school security guard after she asked them for proof of vaccination.
Three years into the pandemic, COVID still causes a major split between Americans. Differing beliefs about masks, prevention, and now vaccinations often lead to heated debates between lawmakers, neighbors, families, and friends. Oftentimes, differing beliefs surrounding the pandemic lead to standoffs, and even public brawls. Even schools aren’t immune from feeling this wrath, as a braw that sent one person to the hospital broke out in a New York City school recently between a school security guard and parents, all over proof of vaccination.
Three parents with a similar kid in common showed up at PS 158 in East New York around 2 pm on April 7th to drop off pizza and cake for a kid who was celebrating his birthday. When the trio was greeted by the school’s safety agent at the entrance, the security guard asked for proof of vaccination, citing the policy of the school. Ignoring the agent, the parents took off inside the school past the guard, claiming they had already talked to someone inside the school about vaccination. As the agent tried to stop the parents, she was brutally attacked by all three.
All three of the parents then fled the scene. According to reports from NY Daily News, the two fathers held the school employee down while the mother beat her up. Gregory Floyd, the head of Teamsters Local 237, the union that represents the city’s school safety agents, reported that the mother yanked the safety agent’s hair and even tore off a fingernail. He also told reporters that the safety agent was taken to Brookdale Hospital for her injuries, all over proof of vaccination.
Surprisingly, the mother and one of the fathers came back to the school later that day to pick up their kid. The mother even called 911 when she arrived at the school, claiming the safety agent “arrested” her because she didn’t show proof of vaccination. Both of them were escorted away from the school in the back of a police car as they were arrested.
Stating to clear up what went down during the altercation, a NYPD spokesperson issued a statement in regards to the attack. They said that the parents were previously informed by the school that they could drop the treats off, but wouldn’t be allowed inside because of COVID restrictions. As policy states, city public schools in New York City require proof of vaccination for all visitors. And while tragic events like this usually bring up further COVID protocol debates, it was safety issues within the district’s schools that took precedent.
Gregory Floyd used the proof of vaccination incident to bring up the problem with safety schools in New York City are faced with. “This shows once again that there’s a need for at least two school safety agents. They shouldn’t work alone. They’re unarmed. And now we have deranged parents we have to worry about,” he said. The school currently enrolls 429 students. There are no cameras within the facility, and the safety agent who was attacked is the sole guard at the school. A spokeswoman for the Department of Education, Jenne Lyle denounced the violent act, saying “We do not tolerate acts of violence at our schools or against any member of our school community, especially our incredible school safety agents who keep our young people safe”
Violence is on the rise in The Big Apple, and with nearly 2,000 schools and 1 million enrolled students throughout the boroughs, only having one safety agent per school seems inadequate. The program is promising, but many believe the presence of agents inside schools needs to be increased. The incident that ended with a school safety agent in the emergency room over proof of vaccination is proof enough of this.
