Defiant demonstrators urge end to coronavirus restrictions
AUSTIN — Encouraged by the apparent support of President Donald Trump, about 200 protesters defied social distancing rules Saturday afternoon to mass in front of the Texas Capitol to call for lifting of social and economic restrictions enacted to slow the spread of COVID-19.
Chanting “Let us work!” “Fire Fauci” and “Make America free again,” participants took turns yelling into megaphones, recording each other on their phones and parading up and down 11th Street at the Congress Avenue intersection. About two dozen Austin police and Texas Department of Public Safety officers stood by.
After an initial confrontation with several protesters edging into the street, the police mostly observed the protest, declining to issue citations for the generally unmasked and non-social-distancing participants.
The rally had been organized and promoted by Owen Shroyer, an Infowars host and colleague of Alex Jones, the site’s founder. Jones made an appearance about 30 minutes into the event, yelling with a megaphone through the sunroof of a black Infowars Humvee, inspiring loud cheers from the crowd.
The protest was the latest in a flurry of similar demonstrations across the country, including in California, Ohio, North Carolina and Michigan, where a demonstration in Lansing drew thousands of protesters.
On Friday, Trump appeared to
throw his support behind the demonstrations, tweeting LIBERATE MICHIGAN and LIBERATE MINNESOTA, two states led by Democratic governors.
The timing of the Austin protest, a day after Gov. Greg Abbott unveiled a plan to ease the economic restrictions in Texas that have crippled businesses and caused the state’s unemployment rate to skyrocket, suggested that the Austin protest was more political than economic. Participants appeared to represent a wide range of conservative causes, from antivaccination and anti-abortion activists, to people quoting Scripture and blowing a shofar.
In addition to “Don’t Tread on Me” flags, others carried signs saying “Dangerous freedom over peaceful slavery” and “Legalize jiu jitsu,” an apparent reference to martial arts studios shuttered by government order. Another blasted ZZ Top songs. A man wore a personal body camera.
Abbott announced Friday afternoon that retailers could open for curbside delivery. He also reopened state parks for small groups of visitors, who must still wear face masks. He said some elective medical procedures could resume, as well, although abortions were not included.
The governor said he would announce more measures April 27 and again in May, provided the spread of the novel coronavirus appeared to be controlled.
Under pressure from constituent dislocations because of their tanking economies, governors in several other states have also announced loosened restrictions. Epidemiologists have warned that such measures are risky without better and more available testing.
About 18,000 Texans have tested positive for the new coronavirus; 450 have died.
Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said Saturday night that more testing is needed before the city and its economy can be reopened.
In an interview Saturday evening on CNN, Turner told Wolf Blitzer that the city’s two public test sites set up by the Federal Emergency Management Agency reached their capacity by 3 p.m. Saturday. The test sites, despite being scheduled to stay open until 7 p.m., tested 1,000 people by 3 p.m.
“The precursor to opening up this state, to opening up the economy, is testing,” Turner said on CNN. “And the testing needs to be robust, ubiquitous in nature, and right now it’s just not enough.”
Turner said the city has yet to reach its peak in COVID-19 cases, though “some say we’re getting very, very close.” And he’s encouraged by the fact that the city did not have a new death to report Saturday and that medical professionals are saying they can handle the COVID-19 caseload.
He said he does agree with Abbott’s plan to use a phased approach, with keeping schools closed for the rest of this academic year and with allowing retail to-go, which permits businesses to reopen but requires that they deliver items to customers’ cars, homes or other locations to minimize contact.