A candidate for the Pennsylvania GOP asked for "20 strongmen" to remove mask mandates from school boards.
Steve Lynch, who is running in Northampton County, northeastern Pennsylvania for office, spoke at a rally held in Harrisburg.
Lynch asked men to "wake Up" and make them great again in his speech.
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The GOP candidate for northeastern Pennsylvania local office pledged to face the pro-mask school board with "20 strong men"
Steve Lynch, speaking at the Freedom Rally against Mask Mandates in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania suggested that people not only go to school boards with fake data, but should also go to them with the intention to get rid of them.
Lynch, the Republican nominee in Northampton County, stated, "I'm going into with 20 strong men and I'm giving them an option to leave or they can be taken away."
Lynch tried to rally the men at the event to a call for action against Northampton Area Schools District's mask mandate. On August 25, the school board announced that students, staff and visitors would be required to wear masks on campus during the 2021-22 academic calendar, which began on August 30.
"Men, where's your place? Men. Men, wake up and smell the coffee. Let's get going. Make men great again. Lynch stated, "Make men men again."
Let's go, men. I need you. He said, "I need you in these coming weeks because we're going to have everything we need in those school boards that voted for the masks to be put back on the children without any scientific... it was done."
Lynch released a video on August 30, in which he explained what he meant with his remarks in Harrisburg.
Lynch stated that Lynch did not threaten current school board members with violence. Lynch stated, "My intention was to raise awareness about the current events in our local communities that have been run in unimportant ways by elected officials."
Lynch clarified that Lynch's words were meant to demonstrate the power of grassroots movements in creating change. Lynch also stated that he meant "strong men" as he meant people from his local communities who wanted to be involved in local, crucial issues.
Lynch is vocal against mask mandates but the number of COVID cases in Northampton County continues to grow. According to The New York Times' COVID tracker, the county reported an average of 89 cases each day on August 30, a 17% increase over the average caseload just two weeks ago.
Pennsylvania also reports an increase in COVID cases at the state level. On August 30, the state saw an average daily number of 3,255 cases, a 63% increase over two weeks ago.
