Liberty University Under Fire for Reopening Amid Coronavirus Pandemic After Several Students Contract Illness

Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia, is under fire for re-opening amid the coronavirus pandemic. The school's president, Jerry Falwell Jr., opted to open its doors after spring break was over in spite of the worldwide push for self-isolation to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. Now, many outspoken critics are holding Falwell responsible for his 11 sick students.

Liberty University is a private evangelical Christian university — one of the largest of its kind in the world. It enrolls about 15,000 students in person on its campus, and it did not send them home when the coronavirus pandemic hit the U.S. According to a report by The New York Times, Falwell decided not to close down.

The result was 11 Liberty students falling ill by Friday — days after returning to campus. Three of the students were reportedly sent to nearby hospitals, while eight others were told to self-isolate. Falwell spoke in an interview on Sunday, saying: "Liberty will be notifying the community as deemed appropriate and required by law."

State and local officials scratched their heads over Falwell's decisions, but did not openly condemn him. People living in the nearby city of Lynchburg are reportedly furious, and their anger is spreading through social media.

The physician who runs Liberty's student health service, Dr. Thomas Eppes Jr., suggested that the problem on campus was not epidemiological, but a sign of "the political divide." This drew even more criticism down on the school, as people on both sides of the political aisle call for steps to be taken to slow the spread of the coronavirus.

"If Liberty sneezes, there are people who don't like the fact that Liberty sneezed," Eppes said. "Mr. Falwell called me to listen to a view that wasn't exactly his. Great leaders do that type of thing."

Here is what social media has to say about Liberty University's surprise re-opening and the resultant health crisis on campus.