An Open Letter to the Cornell Administration: Ban Neck Gaiters Today.
By Amelia Robinson
“Notice: Masks or other face covering required to enter.”
This message is a common sight around Cornell’s campus these days, featured on signs in and around university buildings, and at surveillance testing sites. Cornell has been lauded for its successful, science-based approach to combating the spread of COVID-19 on campus, which includes testing mandates, bans on large gatherings, supporting social distancing efforts, and perhaps most importantly, requiring face coverings on campus.
However, one puzzling aspect of Cornell’s COVID policy stands out: according to university policy, face coverings that aren’t masks are permitted on campus. This allowance has led many people to purchase and wear neck gaiters, which are typically made of a thin, loose material. Many people prefer a neck gaiter to a mask because they feel it is more comfortable. However, substantial scientific evidence has proven that the typical neck gaiter does not work as well as a face mask in preventing the spread of COVID-19, and some studies suggest that they may even make transmission of virus particles easier than if one did not wear a face covering at all.
Despite this readily accessible information, this kind of face covering is still permitted at Cornell, including inside buildings, where transmission of the virus is more likely. By failing to ban this inferior alternative to the classic, cheap, and easy to wear face mask, the Cornell administration puts students and staff at risk. Further, this policy undermines the hard work and elaborate plans that have been made to make this on-campus, mid-pandemic semester a success, thus far. Cornell administrators: ban neck gaiters on campus today, and help make sure that Cornell remains a safe, healthy community, for the duration of the semester and beyond.
Face masks can be purchased at the Cornell store, and many free giveaways have occurred throughout the semester, including the distribution of welcome packets for all students, which included two cloth face masks, as well as other COVID essentials such as thermometers and hand sanitizer.