Politics

CA Teachers Union President Who Led School Closures Caught Dropping Daughter Off At Private School

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• Viral video footage shows a California teachers union president who led school closures dropping his daughter off at a private school.
• The video was reportedly filmed by Berkeley area parents who did not give their names out of fear of retaliation.
• Berkeley Federation of Teachers President Matt Meyer said the video violated his child’s privacy and was “very inappropriate,” adding that there are “no public options for kids her age.”

Viral video footage shows a California teachers union president who led school closures dropping his daughter off at a private school.

Footage posted by the group Guerilla Momz shows Berkeley Federation of Teachers President Matt Meyer dropping his two-year-old daughter off at a private preschool. Meyer’s daughter’s face is blurred out.

“Meet Matt Meyer. White man with dreads and president of the local teachers’ union,” the group tweeted Saturday. “He’s been saying it is unsafe for *your kid* to be back at school, all the while dropping his kid off at private school.”

The video was filmed by Berkeley area parents who did not give their names out of fear of retaliation, according to KQED.

“We’d heard for a while that he sent his kid to private preschool and we’ve been hearing him make crazy claims at the school board meetings — it was ‘too dangerous’ for schools to open because kids wouldn’t wear masks. Meanwhile, his kid is wearing a mask at school,” Guerilla Momz said in a written statement, according to KQED.

Meet Matt Meyer. White man with dreads and president of the local teachers’ union. He’s been saying it is unsafe for *your kid* to be back at school, all the while dropping his kid off at private school:https://t.co/BAIR5xH8LY#OpenSchoolsNow

— guerillaMomz (@GuerillaMomz) February 28, 2021

Meyer did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Daily Caller News Foundation. In a statement to Fox News, the Berkeley Federation of Teachers president said the video violated his child’s privacy and was “very inappropriate,” adding that there are “no public options for kids her age.”

“There are major differences in running a small preschool and a 10,000 student public school district in terms of size, facilities, public health guidance and services that legally have to be provided,” Meyer told Fox. “We all want a safe return to school. The Berkeley Federation of Teachers is excited that Berkeley Unified will be reopening soon with a plan, supported by our members and the district, to get our students back in classrooms starting later this month.”

BREAKING: @BerkeleyUnified union pres. Matt Meyer who has led efforts keeping Berkeley schools closed nearly a year because it’s “unsafe” caught dropping daughter off at private in-person school. Why is it safe for him but not the rest of BUSD families??? Credit @GuerillaMomz
1/3 pic.twitter.com/TRA0Hyx1jS

— Reopen California Schools (@ReopenCASchools) February 28, 2021

The Berkeley Unified School District and the Berkeley Federation of Teachers came to an agreement earlier in February that they would reopen public schools in March and April depending on how quickly staff members got vaccinated. The school reopening plan would stagger returning grades and require on site testing for staff every two weeks.

High-risk teachers or teachers who live with someone who is high risk can continue to work remotely, according to the agreement.

The video sparked a backlash among parents who want their children to return to in-person learning as soon as possible.

“I am a physician,” Dr. Shelene Stine, who works at Highland Hospital treating COVID patients and has three-year-old twins who attend the same school as Meyer’s daughter, told KQED.

Stine also has a five-year-old in a Berkeley Unified School District school.

“It is definitively the scientific agreement that it is possible to deliver safe in-person education. It’s infuriating to know Matt Meyer says kids can’t wear masks when kids in his preschool wear them all day long.”