CHARLESTON, W.Va. — A few hundred protesters from schools in the orange and red on the COVID-19 alert map gathered outside the state Capitol Monday morning into the afternoon, waiting on Gov. Jim Justice to arrive for his press briefing in hopes of getting his attention.
Student-athletes, coaches, staff, and parents are urging Justice to “Let Them Play” and “Open Schools” as those chants echoed once the governor did arrive.
Schools spotted in the crowd included all in Kanawha County, all in Putnam County, Scott, Mingo Central, Morgantown, Oak Hill, Tug Valley, and various middle schools.
“All schools are coming together as one whether there is a rivalry or not,” George Washington senior football player Michael Hughes told MetroNews.
“We are all here for one main goal and that’s to get back to school and get back onto the playing surfaces.”
Gov. Justice didn’t acknowledge the crowd on his way into the briefing. He did announce during the briefing that his coronavirus task force would meet Monday evening to consider adding another color on the state’s color coded map between the yellow and orange levels.
“It would be a level very close to our yellow category. I believe we ought to try with all in us to help them, not only to be able to go to school, but to help them be able to participate in sports,” Justice said.
.@WVGovernor Jim Justice arrives at the state Capitol to hundreds of protestors asking to reopen schools and play sports in the counties that are red and orange on the COVID-19 map. He did not address the crowd and went in for his scheduled briefing. pic.twitter.com/Soh0OcjkEc
— Jake Flatley (@JakeFlatley) September 14, 2020
Nitro football coach Zach Davis told MetroNews there is no spread among his team and they should not be penalized for the actions of others.
“It’s unfortunate that we can’t play because our county just has more people. It’s not that our kids are sick or the coaches are sick, it’s just that we have more people testing positive. We should be able to play,” Davis said.
State School Superintendent Clayton Burch said during a Monday appearance on MetroNews “Talkline” he understands the frustration.
“You see these youth sports, our baseball fields, our midget football, a pool of fans not following the same protocols that schools are following,” Burch said.
Mingo Central senior football player John Lester was in attendance with his team on Monday.
“All you can really do is hope and pray that you get to pay and practice the following week,” he said.
Rally-goers also urged the governor to open schools for in-person learning no matter the color the county is on the map.
Hughes said it will help many kids including himself. The students in the counties that began the school year online have not been in the physical classroom since March.
“Missing school is hard for everybody. We haven’t had structure for six months. Online school is not very efficient especially for us as teenagers.” he said.
“I want to get back to the classroom for my senior year.”