Jason Delgado
Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried expressed support Wednesday for a lawsuit attempting to overturn an executive order that would require all Florida schools to reopen next month.
“I absolutely stand with our teachers unions,” Fried told MSNBC’s Chris Jansing. “As we know in our Florida Constitution, our schools have to be safe and secure in order to be open and that is not what’s going to happen here.”
The Florida Education Association’s lawsuit, filed Monday, hinges on language within the Florida Constitution that requires schools to be “safe” and “secure.”
“Adequate provision shall be made by law for a uniform, efficient, safe, secure, and high quality system of free public schools,” the Florida Constitution mandates.
Opponents argue schools remain unsafe amid Florida’s continuous swell of COVID-19 cases.
“Our parents and our teachers are scared,” Fried said on MSNBC.
The group filed the suit in a Miami-Dade County Circuit Court. It lists several defendants including Gov. Ron DeSantis, Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran, and Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Giminez – all of whom are recognized in their official capacities in the lawsuit.
“Everyone wants schools to reopen, but we don’t want to begin in-person teaching, face an explosion of cases and sickness, then be forced to return to distance learning,” FEA President Fedrick Ingram said. “Florida’s Constitution demands that public schools be safe. Teachers and parents want our schools to meet that basic standard.”
Fried’s support comes after state health officials reported fewer than 10,000 new COVID-19 cases for the first time a week.
The Department of Health, however, confirmed the deaths of 134 Floridians and two non-residents visiting the state.
In total, 5,206 residents have died, as have 113 non-residents in the state.
“We are getting into very dangerous territory and certainly opening up schools is going to be an issue that will continue to prevail in the coming weeks here in the State of Florida,” said Fried.
One comment
Pedro
July 21, 2020 at 2:16 pm
It is not safe to send our children back to school. We need to sue every politician demanding that schools open in this unsafe state. Most of them when asked are they sending their kids to school say no, and they can afford the private schools too. No school until it is safe to do so!
Comments are closed.