On Tuesday, March 1, 2022, Virginia Senate Bill 739 went into effect in public schools across the state, removing the mask mandate for students. When word spread about the impending removal in late February, students at Alexandria City High School took it upon themselves to organize a demonstration during Lunch and Learn against the bill’s passage and what it means for the future of COVID-19 policy in Virginia. On social media, in the hallways, and around the city, multiple names were given to the event: a walk-out, a protest, a demonstration, civic obedience. To the organizers and attendees, however, it held much more weight than a Canva poster.
