SAN DIEGO (Border Report) — Boxes filled with food meant for low-income families will continue to be sent out but without copies of a letter written by President Trump.
The decision was made by San Diego Unified School District Superintendent Cindy Marten.
The district is in charge of distributing the food boxes in portions of San Diego.
The letter has been placed in millions of boxes across the country that are part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s $4 billion Farmers to Families Food Box Program. Since May, the program has distributed more than 100 million boxes, but the letter is considered a new addition.
Part of the president’s letter states: “As part of our response to coronavirus, I prioritized sending nutritious food from our farmers to families in need throughout America.”
Cindy Marten. (Courtesy: San Diego City Schools)
Trump’s letter also suggests people practice good hygiene and wash their hands. But one line in the letter created questions within the district, it reads: “Practice social distancing and consider wearing a face covering in public.”
District officials say it’s misleading and contradicts state and district policies.
Through a statement, Marten and the rest of the school board justified pulling copies of the letter from the food boxes: “Masks are required in California and on every San Diego Unified School campus, it is not optional, as the president wrote in his letter.”
Marten said the district will require that every box is opened before distribution. San Diego Unified receives the boxes sealed with the letter and opens the boxes to refrigerate the milk, yogurt and eggs to prevent spoiling.