Redondo Beach students planning walk out to protest COVID-19 leniency

Student walkout planned in Redondo Beach to protest COVID leniency

Students have expressed they do not feel safe attending classes on campus in the midst of a surge of COVID-19 cases.

REDONDO BEACH, Calif. - While parents have been debating whether kids should be back at school physically or virtually during this recent spike in COVID-19 cases, some students in Redondo Beach are making their opinions known. Some students are planning a walkout Wednesday to advocate for virtual learning.

"These guidelines are fine, but what's the point if they're not being enforced," said Michael Lee Chang, a senior at Redondo Union High School. "The largest clubs are still meeting at lunch indoors. You know, we're afraid. I'm seeing eight through 18 students missing from each of my classes right now. Most because they're out from COVID, but some because they're not comfortable dealing with the current problem of students who test positive for COVID or were exposed to it still attending school."

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The school district has said it's doing everything it can do keep students safe at school. Last week the district distributed rapid at-home COVID test kits, provided by the state, and urged students to take one of the tests the Sunday before returning to class.

COVID cases have surged in recent weeks in Los Angeles County, mostly due to the highly-infections omicron variant. The county averaging nearly 25,000 new cases a day, according to the latest data available Monday.

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Los Angeles Unified School District, the largest in the state, returned to class this week as well, with many students and parents with differing opinions on in-person or virtual learning.

It's not just in California either, yesterday in New York students walked out of class in multiple schools, including Brookly Technical High School, where an estimated 600 kids walked out to protest COVID policies.

The walkout at Redondo Union is scheduled for 10:15 a.m. Tuesday. Latest estimates say 20 students are expected to participate.

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