A former Disney star was among the individuals who gathered on Aug. 10 to criticize the mask mandate at a school district in Franklin, Tenn.
Leigh-Allyn Baker, who starred as Amy Duncan on the Disney Channel's Good Luck Charlie, addressed the Williamson County Board of Education meeting in an effort to thwart the mask protocol. The mandate ended up passing anyway, which led to heckling from protesters, according to NBC News.
"My name is Leigh-Allyn Baker, and I'm a California refugee," the 49-year-old star shared in footage that went viral. "I gave up everything there: a really successful Hollywood career, television shows. I gave it all up for freedom and to come to this friendly place in Tennessee and be greeted with open arms, and I love it here."
She continued, "I wanted to tell you that I have two vax-injured children, and they have medical exemptions after the seizures and the hospitalizations after all of their immunizations. I was granted, obviously, a medical exemption."
According to Leigh-Allyn, who is also known for recurring roles on Will & Grace and Charmed, her children "will just not be able to get" the COVID-19 vaccine. The star added, "And still, I would never put them in a mask because their brain needs oxygen to grow, which the neurologists can confirm."
The actress went on to refer to the meeting as a "clown show" and said that she felt empowered by "the Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, the Bill of Rights, the Federalist Papers and also the Bible. These guarantee my freedom and yours and our children's to breathe oxygen."
Her outburst, which has raised eyebrows on social media, can be seen in the above tweet.