LARGE CROWDS PROTEST OVER BEACH CLOSURES BY CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR
Huntington Beach: A large crowd gathered Friday in Huntington Beach, California, to protest the governor’s order to close all beaches in Orange County to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
Between 2500 and 3000 people took part in the beach closure protest, according to Huntington Beach Police Chief Robert
Handy.
Enforcement of the closure was light because officers did not have enough signage to affect a full closure when the order went into effect last Friday morning, Handy said.
The large crowd was packed near the popular Huntington Beach Pier. Most of them didn’t have masks, despite recommendations from public health officials that people must wear masks and socially distance in public.
The target of their ire, California Governor Gavin Newsom, urged the protesters to take care of themselves by wearing face coverings and employing physical distancing.
“This disease doesn’t know if you’re a protester, a Democrat, a Republican,” the governor said at a press conference last Friday. “Protect yourself, protect your family, your kids, your parents, your grandparents, your neighbours.”
An Orange County judge rejected a request from local officials to block Mr Newsom’s order closing the beaches in the county to slow the spread of the coronavirus.
Lawyers representing three cities argued the governor had singled out the county and overstepped his authority while allowing other beaches in California to remain open.
The judge agreed to hear more on the challenges to the beach order next week. CNN