Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis Under Fire After Telling Highschool Students to Remove 'Ridiculous' Face Masks During Event

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis faced criticism on Wednesday after he was seen in a video telling high school students to remove "ridiculous" face masks during an event.

DeSantis made his instructions to the students at the University of South Florida, the Republican governor walked to his podium and speak for a news conference on Wednesday, Fox News reported.

In the video posted on Twitter, DeSantis pointed his fingers at the students and instructed them to remove their masks, as some of the students gushed and crackled with his statement.

"You do not have to wear your masks. I mean please take them off. Honestly, it's not doing anything and we gotta stop with this COVID theatre," DeSantis noted, per Associated Press.

The Florida governor then told students that it is alright to wear face masks if they want to. "This is ridiculous," the Republican governor said as he ended his conversation with the students and faced the podium to start his speech.

DeSantis' statements gathered comments from people online, criticizing what he did and said to the students. Democratic Representative Frederica Wilson lamented what the Florida governor did on Wednesday, as she cast shame on the Republican governor.

"Shame on you, Governor DeSantis, for berating students who choose to wear masks and for calling the ongoing #COVID Pandemic 'theater,'" Wilson said.

One user commented on DeSantis' move, saying that "Floridians deserve better." Another user called DeSantis "disrespectful."

Meanwhile, MSNBC host Chris Hayes sarcastically tweeted that "it's totally reasonable and normal to publicly berate a bunch of high school students because they're wearing masks."

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis' Camp Defends Republican Over Actions on Face Masks

In the light of the criticism, DeSantis' camp defended him over his actions on Wednesday.

The Florida governor's spokeswoman, Christina Pushaw, backed up the DeSantis' comments on Wednesday, saying that "masks make no difference" in reducing COVID-19 transmission, Insider reported per Yahoo! Sports.

"After two years of mixed messages from health authorities and the media, the governor wants to make sure everyone is aware of the facts and data now, so they can feel free and comfortable without a mask," Pushaw said.

Meanwhile, others said that the Florida governor was right with what he did.

Supporters defended DeSantis as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) eased the face mask mandates last month. However, Hillsborough County, the place where the University of South Florida is located, is deemed high risk by the CDC, per Associated Press.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis on Face Masks

It was not the first time that Governor Ron DeSantis showed that he is against wearing face masks.

Last year, the Florida governor threatened to withhold the salary of school officials who will impose face mask mandates in their school districts.

During that time, DeSantis's office highlighted the "rights of parents to make decisions" when it comes to the health and education of their children.

However, school district officials were not in favor of what the governor did, with some of the officials saying that the threat to their paycheck will not sway their decision to remove face masks.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written By: Joshua Summers

WATCH: Florida Governor Ron DeSantis Admonishes Students For Wearing Face Masks - From CBS Miami