North Cook News

The Northside Chicago GOP Club has called for an end to vaccine mandates.

"No one is at liberty to control what medical and health decisions you decide for you and your family except for you and your family. Seems pretty logical and straight forward, doesn’t it?" Northside Chicago GOP Club wrote in a Sept. 9 Twitter post.

Gubernatorial candidate Gary Rabine has also called for an end to student vaccine mandates, according to Galesburg Reporter. His objections focus on the fact that not all of the available vaccines have been approved by the FDA for emergency use in children ages 12-18. 

“Stop bullying Illinois children into getting an experimental vaccine,” Rabine posted on Facebook, according to the Galesburg Reporter. “I’m calling on JB Pritzker to immediately issue an executive order banning K-12 school districts, private schools and colleges in Illinois from mandating and requiring students to get a COVID vaccine.”

Schools and universities across the state have been steadily increasing vaccine requirements. Chicago's DePaul College Prep H.S. recently announced that it would be requiring students to get vaccinated to attend classes, according to Chicago City Wire.

"In the interest of the health and safety of the entire DePaul Prep community, the protocols, practices, and policies shared here are non-negotiable," a letter from Principal Megan Stanton-Anderson and school President Mary Dempsey reads. "Parents and students who are not able to comply with these are asked to reconsider their position or seek alternative placement for the 2021-22 school year. "

Lake County Gazette reported that Stevenson High School in Lincolnshire recently announced that all teachers, faculty and staff must be vaccinated by Oct. 15 unless they have a medical or religious exception.

“In mandating vaccinations as a condition of employment, the goal is to maintain the safety of the school community and more quickly return to the teaching and learning experience that families have come to expect,” Eric Waddell, Superintendent at Stevenson said in a statement, according to Lake County Gazette.

Teachers who have not yet been vaccinated are required to submit to twice weekly COVID testing, The Chicago Tribune reported.