METROPOLIS….State Rep. Patrick Windhorst expressed thanks and appreciation to Sangamon County Judge Raylene Grischow following Friday’s news that Governor Pritzker’s mask mandate for students in Illinois public schools has been temporarily halted. Windhorst says he has long favored local control and individual freedom to choose whether or not to wear a mask over top-down mandates from Governor Pritzker and IDPH.
“I was pleased with Judge Grischow’s decision to place a temporary restraining order on Governor Pritzker’s mandate that requires teachers and children in our public schools to wear masks and be quarantined for close contact without due process. I call on the governor to join the vast majority of states and withdraw his mask mandates and drop his appeal of this temporary restraining order. I applaud the school districts that have already taken action to exercise local control based on this ruling.
Since the beginning of the governor’s mandates, I have been steadfast in my belief that if someone wants to wear a mask, they should, and if they don’t, the government shouldn’t dictate they must. Our kids haven’t had a normal school day in more than 700 days, with mitigations and Executive Orders from Governor Pritzker coming with threats to defund our schools and cancel extracurricular activities for those that defy his top-down rules. This ruling is a much-needed and welcome win for school districts, teachers, and students of all ages.”
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