The Georgia teen who was arrested shortly after sharing a picture of a volume hall in high school in which many students were seen without masks said they had received threats – because the school announced that it goes to online classes amidst infections, according to reports.
North Paulding High School sophomore Hannah Watters was suspended for violating school policies last week after posting the image of students grabbing the hall. On Friday, she tweeted that the school had withdrawn her suspension amid a public outcry.
Nine people – six students and three faculty members – have since tested positive for the coronavirus, the school in Dallas, Georgia, informed parents on Saturday.
The school was closed as a result of the infections and the district announced that learning would move online for Monday and Tuesday.
Hannah told CNN that she and her family and friends had received threatening messages about the riot.
One message said “I know where this girl lives”, Hannah told the network on Sunday.
Other missions included, “We’ll jump every girl named Hannah into tenth grade,” and “Hannah will have a rough day at school on Monday,” Hannah said.
The girl said she understands why some people are angry, but insists she shared the image because she felt it was the right thing to do.
‘I feel like a lot of teachers have their backs to me because they know how dangerous it is to go to school. But I know a lot of the kids I go to school with, I already have backlash, threats and things like that, “Hannah told CNN.
‘I know I’m doing the right thing and it will not stop me from doing it. But it is concerning, especially because it is a lot of the people I go to school with, people I have known for years, who threaten me, “she added.
Hannah said many people have told her they will be tested for COVID-19 after the school closes.
“I have heard from many friends that they have received tests or that their family members or their teacher have been tested because it has not been safe in recent days,” she told CNN.
“We were only at school for three days and the fact that we already had nine cases at the end of that week is concerning because we do not know how many people those nine people came in contact with,” Hannah continued.
“It will spread like wildfire at that school,” she said, adding that she did not think her school would have tackled the problem just as much as it did if it had not posted the shot.
“We could have just opened up like a lot of other schools,” she said. “They sent our species to school and used us as guinea pigs to see what would happen later.”
School Superintendent Brian Otott told parents on Tuesday they will find out if virtual learning will stay in place longer.
“I apologize for any inconvenience this schedule may cause,” he wrote, 11Alive reported. “But hopefully we can all agree that the health and safety of our students and staff take precedence over all other considerations at this time.”
The schoolmaster said the high school on Monday and Tuesday “will be thoroughly cleaned and disinfected”.
“The district will consult with the Department of Public Health to assess the environment and determine if there are any extra close contacts for confirmed cases that have not already been identified,” he wrote.
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