Mask Debate Divides US As Delta Drives Covid Surge

The Republican Governor of Florida has banned his state's schools from requiring students to wear masks and even threatened to cut funding of schools defying his order.

The recent surge of COVID-19, driven by the Delta variant, has reignited political controversy around mask-wearing in the United States, with some governors opposing all measures to make masks mandatory despite advice from health authorities. The dispute feels familiar, harkening back to the early days of the pandemic when masks became a symbol of political affiliation in the US -- the clash led by then-president Donald Trump, who made it a point of pride to be seen without a face covering. More than a year later, the subject has again become particularly sensitive as another school year approaches. "This should be something that a parent is ultimately making the decision on," Republican Governor Ron DeSantis of Florida reiterated on Tuesday, having banned his state's schools from requiring students to wear masks.