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- A Texas parent is accused of ripping a mask off a teacher's face at an event this week, local reports say.
- The teacher was not injured and did not file charges against the parent, KXAN reported.
- The incident comes as school districts in Texas are defying Gov. Abbott's orders banning mask mandates.
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An unidentified Texas parent is accused of snatching a mask off of a teacher's face at an event this week.
Eanes Independent School District Superintendent Dr. Tom Leonard told CBS Austin he is "frustrated" after two teachers were assaulted while wearing face masks at a "Meet the Teacher" event.
"A parent physically assaulted a teacher by ripping a mask off her face, others yelling at a teacher to take off her mask because they could not understand what the teacher was saying while her face was covered," Leonard wrote in a letter on Tuesday.
KXAN reported that the teacher who had her mask forcibly removed has not filed charges and did not suffer any injuries. The incident took place amid growing tension surrounding school mask mandates in Texas.
"This type of behavior will not be tolerated in Eanes ISD. Our staff are on the front lines of this pandemic; let's give them some space and grace. Please, I am asking everyone to be kind…do not fight mask wars in our schools, " Leonard continued.
Leonard said the school district is complying with the Travis County mask mandate, which requires face coverings to reduce the spread of the highly contagious delta-variant.
"Unless the Texas Supreme Court eventually rules this order is superseded by an Executive Order from the Governor, the Travis County Order presently mandates masks in all schools in Travis County," the letter stated.
Travis country mandates come amid multiple school districts in Texas defiance of orders from Governor Greg Abbott, who tested positive for COVID-19 Tuesday. The order banned mask mandates as the Delta variant has struck Texas hard. Less than 50% of the state's population is fully vaccinated and children have increasingly contracted the virus.