A school in Temecula was placed on lockdown after two students refused to comply with the mask mandate. The students say they chose to not wear the masks for religious reasons.
The siblings told NBC that they refused to wear masks because of their religious beliefs.
The father of the siblings, Gary Nelson, told NBC that his children were sent home from Springs Charter Schools Temecula Student Center and “told not to come back with or without a mask.” And if they returned, “they would be charged with trespassing.”
“The Bible says we’re made in the image of God and Satan tries to cover that up. A mask is a sign of oppression,” Nelson told NBC on Thursday. “If it was Muslim, Jewish or something of a more high-profile minority religion in this country, yes, they would have accommodated … just to say they weren’t discriminating based on that religion. But they feel safe because it’s Christianity.”
It is not a Christian belief to refuse to wear a mask, according to NBC.
Principal Rebecca Fabozzi wrote in a letter to Nelson, “Each of your students refused to comply with the CDPH mask mandate for public schools. When asked by staff to wear a face covering, your students refused to comply,” NBC reported.