Do people at huge protests risk catching coronavirus? Here’s what to know
Already fighting a global coronavirus pandemic, the United States now faces massive protests over the in-custody death of George Floyd in Minnesota. Could the two converge?
Absolutely, say public health officials, unless protesters wear face masks and practice social distancing, CNN reports.
“We have two crises that are sandwiched on top of one other,” says Mayor Jacob Frey of Minneapolis, reports The New York Post.
Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms of Atlanta urged protesters to “go get a COVID test,” The New York Daily News reported.
“There is still a pandemic in America that’s killing black and brown people at higher numbers,” Bottoms said, according to NBC News.
In Minnesota, ground zero for the protests over Floyd’s death, black people represent at least 29 percent of the coronavirus cases despite making up only 6 percent of the state’s population, The Star-Tribune reported.
National protests erupted this week after video emerged of a Minneapolis police officer kneeling on Floyd’s neck as he begged for air Monday during his arrest on suspicion of fraud.
Floyd, a black man, later died. Officer Derek Chauvin, who is white, has been arrested in the death. He and three other Minneapolis police officers also have been fired.
Some of the protests, which have spread from Minneapolis across the nation, have resulted in clashes with police, fires and looting.
More than 24 U.S. cities have enacted curfews, and the National Guard has been called out in 12 states and Washington, D.C., The Washington Post reports.
Jan Malcolm, state health commissioner for Minnesota, says health officials “honor” the right to protest, but caution people to be careful about coronavirus risks, The Star-Tribune reported.
“You have a right to demonstrate. You have the right to protest. God bless America,” said Gov. Andrew Cuomo of New York, CNN reported. “You don’t have a right to infect other people. You don’t have a right to act in a way that’s going to jeopardize public health.”
Malcolm said health officials are especially concerned by the densely packed crowds at some protests and the potential to draw people from a wide area, including from out of state, The Star-Tribune reported.
“Shouting and cheering loudly, that does produce a lot of droplets and aerosolization that can spread the virus to people,” said Dr. James Phillips, a physician and assistant professor at George Washington University Hospital, CNN reported.
Health officials advised protesters to wear face masks — which are already prevalent in many photos of the protests — and try to stay as far apart as possible.
More than 6 million cases of the COVID-19 virus have been confirmed worldwide with more than 369,000 deaths as of May 31, according to Johns Hopkins University. The United States has more than 1.7 million confirmed cases with more than 103,000 deaths.
The World Health Organization has declared coronavirus a global pandemic. In the United States, President Donald Trump has declared a national emergency.
This story was originally published May 31, 2020 at 12:20 PM with the headline "Do people at huge protests risk catching coronavirus? Here’s what to know."