Betsy DeVos Is Treating American Children Like ‘Lab Rats,’ Writer Says

In a Sunday piece for Raw Story, writer Terry H. Schwadron took aim at Donald Trump’s Secretary of Education, Betsy DeVos, for her recent push to open schools amid the coronavirus pandemic and accused her of treating American children like “lab rats.”

Schwadron noted DeVos’ apparent agreement with the president’s push to reopen America’s educational institutions in September and accused her of failing to provide a concrete plan on how such a reopening would be safely achieved.

“Instead, she turned to the old reliable – that local districts need to figure it out on their own,” he wrote.

The journalist suggested that the push to reopen education across the country is the kind of one-size-fits-all solution that they are suggesting is not effective in America. He also noted that COVID-19 does not appear to be dying down in the U.S. and highlighted the persistence of the “popular unwillingness” to take the necessary preventative measures against the virus.

Elsewhere in the piece, Schwadron said DeVos’ Department of Education is failing to allocate its resources to things like online teaching and student access to laptops and internet connection. He also accused DeVos of failing to properly coordinate with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and teachers about the possible plan for safely reopening.

“Instead, we fall back on the silliness of partisan politics. We should open schools, risking further spread of contagion among adults as well as children, because Trump wants it.”

In an interview with CNN last Sunday, DeVos claimed that she was working with school leaders to help them craft their reopening plans. But as reported by The Guardian, she did not offer details of specific strategies for re-establishment, which drew criticism from Democrats. Notably, Massachusetts Rep. Ayanna Pressley suggested that DeVos is not a trustworthy figure to be leading the decision on resuming American education.

“Teachers, kids and parents are fearing for their lives. You point to a private sector that has put profits over people and claimed the lives of thousands of essential workers. I wouldn’t trust you to care for a house plant, let alone my child.”

A Yahoo News/YouGov poll released last week concluded that almost two-thirds of Americans are opposed to Trump’s plan to reopen schools in the fall, which is supported by DeVos. Yet some experts believe that opening educational institutions back up is the best path forward.

As The Inquisitr reported, Dr. Amesh Adalja, Dr. Michael Silverman, and epidemiologist Ashleigh Tuite all supported the president’s path forward.