Over 250,000 people sign petition to keep Quebec schools closed

Over a quarter of a million people have signed an online petition to halt Quebec from reopening primary schools.

On April 11, the petition was launched on the change.org website after Quebec Premier François Legault’s initial announcement that schools could open in May.

The petition has gained further traction since Monday’s news that schools throughout the province will open on May 11 (and May 19 in Montreal and Laval).

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“Quebec will experience a major peak in the coming days with the spread of COVID-19,” said the French petition. “There is no question that the lives of children and adolescents will be endangered by opening schools in May. Let’s make the Quebec government aware that the reopening is unrealistic and dangerous for children, families, and caregivers.”

As of this writing, the petition has received 259,507 signatures of its 300,000 goal.

“You have to contain the curve and wait until the situation has improved,” continues the petition. “With children being vectors for the disease (and often asymptomatic), it will bring the virus home and contaminate the parents who will in turn contaminate other adults.”

Lobbyists point to “several provinces” in the country that will only be opening in September 2020 as good examples of which path to follow.

The petition continued to state that physical distancing rules will be “almost impossible” to respect and concluded, “economic pressure should in no way take precedence over health.”