More than 1,200 Oakland students pledge to stay home unless schools improve Covid safety

Chicago public schools students protest outside the district headquarters on Friday in one of many student demonstrations across the US. Photograph: Pat Nabong/AP

More than 1,200 students in Oakland, California, have signed a petition saying they would stay home this week unless school administrators provide additional Covid protections, including more N95 masks, weekly testing and better social distancing – or a shift to virtual learning.

On Tuesday, three district campuses were closed because students and teachers, in solidarity, stayed home.