Over the weekend, comedian Adam Carolla and a union representing 35,000 Los Angeles-area school teachers traded barbs after Carolla suggested the teachers are either “cowards” or simply unwilling to work.
Carolla wrote, “LA teachers either don’t want to go back to work or are cowards. Those are the only two options left.”
LA teachers either don’t want to go back to work or are cowards. Those are the only two options left
— Adam Carolla (@adamcarolla) February 20, 2021
The United Teachers of Los Angeles accused Carolla of preaching to them from a wealthy area, tweeting, “Teachers ARE working, @adamcarolla, but congrats on being spared on the devastation our communities face. The communities we serve have COVID-19 levels 15 times greater than those in your wealthy La Cañada neighborhood.”
The union added, “Who is the coward, the teachers who dare confront government officials and powerful business to fight for the health of their students and families, or you who sit safely in your La Cañada mansion criticizing what apparently you don’t even understand: Teachers ARE working.”
Teachers ARE working, @adamcarolla, but congrats on being spared the devastation our communities face. The communities we serve have COVID-19 levels 15 times greater than those in your wealthy La Cañada neighborhood.#AdamCarolla #EntitlementAlert #MakeitSafe pic.twitter.com/TgtdPQOH39
— United Teachers Los Angeles (@UTLAnow) February 20, 2021
Who is the coward, the teachers who dare confront government officials and powerful business to fight for the health of their students and families, or you who sit safely in your La Cañada mansion criticizing what apparently you don’t even understand: Teachers ARE working pic.twitter.com/tUMO4vvL3h
— United Teachers Los Angeles (@UTLAnow) February 20, 2021
Carolla responded, “That’s untrue. I called them cowards from my mansion Malibu.”
That’s untrue. I called them cowards from my mansion Malibu. https://t.co/EqXI4nTRcC
— Adam Carolla (@adamcarolla) February 21, 2021
One teacher prompted a further joke from Carolla by pronouncing, “As a proud public school teacher, I proudly place your books in the trash. I regret spending any of my salary on supporting you.”
As a proud public school teacher, I proudly place your books in the trash. I regret spending any of my salary on supporting you. pic.twitter.com/zW2YeW2EVx
— Kathleen (@RadKathleen) February 20, 2021
Carolla replied, “I am now going to throw out my textbooks.”
He added, “Thanks for fighting for the health of the students. Keep up the good work.”
I am now going to throw out all of my textbooks https://t.co/szMfd8WKCS
— Adam Carolla (@adamcarolla) February 21, 2021
Thanks for fighting for the health of the students. Keep up the good work https://t.co/tIPgII8bI0
— Adam Carolla (@adamcarolla) February 22, 2021
Carolla’s initial remarks followed the February 12 announcement from the Centers for Disease Control in which the institute explained, “Based on the data available, in-person learning in schools has not been associated with substantial community transmission.” Excerpt below:
Based on the data available, in-person learning in schools has not been associated with substantial community transmission. Although national COVID-19 case incidence rates among children and adolescents have risen over time, this trend parallels trends observed among adults. Increases in case incidence among school-aged children and school reopenings do not appear to pre-date increases in community transmission.
For schools to provide in-person learning, associations between levels of community transmission and risk of transmission in school should be considered. If community transmission is high, students and staff are more likely to come to school while infectious, and COVID-19 can spread more easily in schools.
Some studies have found that it is possible for communities to reduce incidence of COVID-19 while keeping schools open for in-person instruction. A study comparing county-level COVID-19 hospitalizations between counties with in-person learning and those without in-person learning found no effect of in-person school reopening on COVID-19 hospitalization rates when baseline hospitalization rates were low or moderate. The association between COVID-19 incidence and transmission in school settings and levels of community transmission underscores the importance of controlling disease spread in the community to protect teachers, staff, and students in schools.32
Some outbreaks have occurred in schools, leading to closures. Significant secondary transmission of SARS-CoV-2 infection can and does occur in school settings when mitigation strategies are not implemented or are not followed. When outbreaks occur in school settings, they tend to result in increased transmission among teachers and school staff rather than among students. …
Though outbreaks do occur in school settings, multiple studies have shown that transmission within school settings is typically lower than – or at least similar to – levels of community transmission, when mitigation strategies are in place in schools.