COVID-19 Spreading Through Protests
When George Floyd died, millions of people went out to protest against the injustice of his murder all over the U.S. Others have donated money to charities and posted hashtags on social media in support of the Black Lives Matter Movement continually and for Blackout Day, this past Tuesday, June 2nd. However, the recent protests have health officials concerned that the large groups of people, even though many wore masks, could lead to an increase in coronavirus cases.
Almost all fifty states were in the beginning stages of reopening when the protests began. With the protests happening in various locations, a second spike of positive COVID-19 cases could threaten the progress that was made only weeks ago. According to CNN, both Arizona and Texas have seen a sudden increase in positive cases, with each state reporting over 1,000 new cases of the virus on June 2nd. Other states, including California, have also seen a rise of positive corona virus cases from 98,000 cases to over 110,000 on June 3rd. Washington D.C., and other locations, have been forced to delay the reopening process due to the increased case load.
Conversely, New Jersey, Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina, and a few other states have not seen a significant increase in new COVID-19 cases so far. Therefore, the reopening process in these states has remained on track. The reason for the growth of corona virus cases in some states simply comes from the proximity of protesters for long periods of time. Even with protective gear such as masks and gloves, people remain susceptible to infection. Amen Ogbongbemiga, who participated in a protest on June 2nd, posted on Twitter that he tested positive for the virus so that others could take the necessary precautions and prevent infecting others. According to CNN, Ogbongbemiga tweeted, “After attending a protest in Tulsa AND being well protective of myself, I have tested positive for COVID-19. Please, if you are going to protest, take care of yourself and stay safe.”
Many state and health officials have expressed differing opinions regarding the possibility that the virus will continue to spread among protesters. The Governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo commented, “You have a right to demonstrate, you have a right to protest, God Bless America. 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." Recently, Dr. Fauci of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, stated in a live Question and Answer session that he remains confident that a vaccine will be available by 2021. Fauci commented, “I'm cautiously optimistic that with the multiple candidates we have with different platforms, that we are going to have a vaccine that will make it deployable”. There is no current vaccine for this condition.
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