Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
A growing groundswell of people is pushing states into lifting stay-at-home restrictions despite reluctance from general public.
Demonstrations planned Saturday in 3 Florida cities
A growing groundswell of people is pushing states into lifting stay-at-home restrictions, despite reluctance from some health care workers and the general public.
In Florida, organizers have protests planned for Saturday in Miami, Orlando and Tallahassee, all part of a small but vocal movement across the country.
They cite the flailing economy and mental health issues caused by the shutdowns, but public officials and many health experts warn that lifting restrictions prematurely could give the pandemic new life.
Grant Towers, 22, of Coral Springs, planned a protest in Boca Raton but canceled it after the property owner consulted police.
Towers called the shutdowns “ridiculous” and said the economy should be the priority. “I don’t know if I believe these [COVID-19 case] numbers at all,” said Towers.
“I think they’re way overblown and yeah, I’m not even particularly worried about that. I think the economy is way more important.”
Those seeking to reopen Florida’s beaches and businesses are a minority. A Quinnipiac University Poll released Wednesday found 72% of Florida voters don’t want social-distancing rules eased before May. An even higher percentage — 76% — don’t want the state’s economy opened until public health officials deem it safe to do so. Just 17% said the economy should be reopened even if public health officials warn against it.
Kristen Johnson, a nurse in the infectious disease unit at Broward Health Medical Center in Fort Lauderdale, has been working exclusively with coronavirus patients over the past few weeks.
“I don’t think it’s a good idea to reopen the economy at this time at all,” Johnson said. “I believe the number of cases are starting to decrease because of the fact that we have been on quarantine and places have been shut down. Hav
ing groups of people come back together could be unsafe and increase the numbers of cases again.”
About 100 people attended a protest calling for a reopening of Florida’s economy this past weekend. They converged on downtown Delray Beach, where they honked their horns, shouted slogans through megaphones and held signs along Atlantic Avenue.
Social media has fueled several protests in other states. Facebook recently removed posts about the events, saying they would violate stay-at-home orders in states such as California, New Jersey and Nebraska.
Behind some of the protests are libertarian activists like those who favor gun rights and oppose vaccines and other government involvement in individual activity — as well as the conservative movement and Trump campaign surrogates, Bloomberg News reported. The protests planned this weekend in Florida are partially organized by the right-wing group Proud Boys.
President Donald Trump has defended the protesters, saying some governors may have gone too far.
“I think we gotta start having the discussion on getting people back to work and getting people back to the outdoors,” Boca Raton Vice Mayor Jeremy Rodgers said prior to the Delray event he attended. “Residents can’t passively enjoy the beach from 20 feet away from each other, we can’t go to the park, I can’t shoot hoops with my son ourselves at the park and there’s long-term mental health problems with that and people are going to stay home and be less healthy when we want them to be more healthy. I think it’s time to start having the discussion on how to open up safely and open up soon.”
Health care workers say many of the protesters aren’t wearing masks or practicing social distancing during the events, putting themselves and others at more risk of contracting or spreading coronavirus.
“I don’t think they’re going about it the right way,” said nurse practitioner Eileen Tarpey, regional director of clinical operations for the house call program at Optum Healthcare.
“I understand their fear and the concerns they have. They’re valid. But I don’t think they’re going about it the right way and I don’t think we can just open up the economy the way they want to. If we do, we risk huge surges in COVID-19, which would inundate the hospitals and be quite the crisis like New York.”
“Having groups of people come back together could be unsafe and increase the numbers of cases again.”
Kristen Johnson, a nurse in the infectious disease unit at Broward Health Medical Center in Fort Lauderdale