An Illinois high school student and her mother spoke out Wednesday after the teen said she was threatened with a knife at school because she was not wearing a mask, despite the school district’s optional mask policy.
Fremd High School senior Grace and her mother Debora joined “Fox & Friends” to discuss the confrontation and how the traumatic event unfolded.
“I was sitting in my seat like normal, a student angrily said, no one, better get near me, and I look up at him confused,” she told co-host Brian Kilmeade.
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“And he goes, you, especially you, and he points his finger at me, and then I look around for a second… By the time I look around, he pulls a knife out and lunges it at me and I start freaking out, and I’m shaking, and I’m screaming,” she continued.
Grace said that although she did not predict a confrontation of this magnitude, she expected som tension walking into the classroom this week.
“I knew there was going to be tension. It was foreshadowed,” Grace said. “I had no clue it was going to go to this level, but definitely the whole school was aware that there was tension coming in on Monday.”
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Masks became optional on Monday in over 140 school districts in the Chicago area after a county circuit court judge issued a temporary restraining order against Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker’s mask mandate in the classroom.
Sangamon County Circuit Court Judge Raylene Grischow issued the ruling last week, claiming the governor overstepped his authority with the emergency order.
Grace’s mother emphasized the need for mutual respect for one another following the incident that left her daughter hysterical.
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“I hope that we can rise above this,” Debora said. “I would love to have a message to the parents, to coach their children, to respect others, respect their choices.”
“I’m expecting parents to rise above this and come together with compassion and love,” she continued.
The school district addressed the incident, reiterating its top priority is the safety of students and staff and thanking those who respected one another to foster a “productive” school day. The student who threatened Grace was reportedly arrested and will face charges.