Headline from March 13, 2020: 

Governor cancels Illinois schools statewide until March 30 to slow the spread of coronavirus

Headline from April 23, 2020: 

Illinois residents will be required to cover their faces in public starting May 1

Headline from May 17, 2021:

Pritizer lifts mask mandate for fully vaccinated Illinois residents

Headline from August 30, 2021: 

New mask mandate goes into effect in Illinois

Headline from February 13, 2022: 

Districts 203 and 204 will be shifting to mask optional policy

We’ve been seeing these headlines over the past two years about the virus that has controlled our lives: COVID-19. The debate over masks, specifically mask mandates, has been the center of controversy throughout the pandemic, both scientifically and socially. After a lawsuit in Sangamon County, Illinois, mask mandates have gone from a statewide mandate to a local decision. What is society going to look like now? Are we at a point where we can move on from the debate? At this point in the pandemic, people are smart and civil enough to make their own strong decisions to benefit themselves and their circumstances. So what’s the point in fighting?

“The science” has been a major debate with a variety of unreliable information easily accessible on the internet. Studies say one thing about masks one day and something quite different the next.  Many people are not sure what to trust. The Center for Disease Control and the World Health Organization are constantly changing their guidelines to the point where they don’t feel like guidelines, but questions. Even our nominal U.S. COVID-19 expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, switches between the information he believes to be correct. This uncertainty in the professional health world strengthens the tension of social arguments as people spew out what they believe to be true facts from a vast chasm of sources. It’s unreliable. So instead of “following the science,” I choose to follow my instincts and what I know is best for myself. I’m reliable. Following a social over science notion is as simple as choosing to wear a mask because you live with your grandparents and want to keep them as safe as possible. Or you may choose to not wear a mask because your history has proven you have a strong immune system and you feel comfortable with handling the virus if you contract it. So what’s the point in fighting for “the science” right now? People are now more than ever capable of making strong decisions for themselves, their families and their circumstances 

Social stigmas continue to plague the social debates of COVID-19 and will never ever stop. If you wear a mask, you’re a liberal who’s deeply afraid of contracting Covid from any living species and if you don’t, you’re a conservative who believes Covid is a hoax created by aliens in space. Sounds ridiculous, right? Though some people may think this way, this worst-case scenario belief is damaging to our society. It can be hard, especially for teenagers, to push back from peer pressure and influence. We are constantly wanting to fit in and reach the highest standard of society whether we admit it or not. The same occurs with masks. Wearing or not wearing a mask depending on where you are is a social norm. Being the minority leaves you vulnerable for judgment. Let them judge. I make my decision for myself, so why should I let other people influence me? Be strong and confident in your own decisions no matter what other people say. 

Even if you decide to engage in a conversation about masks, most people aren’t going to enter the debate looking for their minds to be changed, but for their opinions to be heard. At this point, we have heard every single angle of the mask debate on both sides. So what’s the point in fighting? No matter what side you’re on, you’ve already made a decision that’s right for yourself, so there’s no need to go through the frustration and anger of convincing someone to change. Nobody is going to. 

So where does this take us? Personal health is individual and allowing others to choose what is best for their body is necessary during tense times. Let people choose to either wear or not wear a mask based on what’s best for them and not because of peer pressure. Have civil conversations with people. It is unnecessary for either side to belittle or force the other side to do anything they aren’t comfortable with, so what’s the point in fighting? You have to make decisions that are best for you rather than relying on others to do it for you. Just be kind to one another and end the debate everyone is sick of hearing about.