American Federation of Teachers (AFT) President Randi Weingarten has been facing criticism after photos of her sitting maskless at the 2021 SOMOS conference in Puerto Rico emerged online.
Adriana Aviles, a parent, shared the photos, writing: "...I wonder if anyone needed proof of Vax to attend this 'work vaca'..."
Weingarten tweeted in response to explain why she had decided to remove a mask.
She defended her action by saying that the requirements for participating in the conference were strict enough to keep those present safe. However, she admitted that her action could not have been justified anyway.
As the conversation unfolded on Twitter many other concerned parents joined in to try and get their point of view across.
Some of the parents sounded even more straightforward:
"...we are one of the few countries masking toddlers and grade school children...It’s not lost on me that this severe obligation on kids would not exist if it weren’t for Ms. Weingarten and the other corrupt leaders that run our public education system."
Before the school year began, Weingarten spoke in favour of children being required to wear masks at school.
"We see the Delta variant be very transmissible...Masks stop transmission, so universal masking is going to be very helpful to keep kids safe, to keep the unvaccinated safe, and to keep schools open," she said in an interview with CNN.