Floyd protests are ‘perfect recipe’ for Covid-19 surge, says top US infectious diseases expert Fauci. Others argue: blame racism
Dr Anthony Fauci has warned that demonstrations over George Floyd could cause a second wave of Covid-19, while other health officials have dismissed such concerns and insisted the demonstrations are more important.
Fauci, who sits on the White House Coronavirus Task Force, says he finds the protests across the nation “very concerning” and a “perfect recipe” for a surge in Covid-19 cases.
“As I sat in front of the TV and watched the screen go from Washington DC to New York City to Los Angeles to Philadelphia, I got really concerned,” he told the Sunday Times.
“I was going: ‘Oh my goodness, I hope this doesn’t set us back a lot.’ [After] all of the work in trying to maintain the physical distance and doing all the things, I became very concerned that we might see a resurgence,” he added.
Also on rt.com Black Lives Matter ‘more important’ than coronavirus: Thousands of demonstrators hit the streets of London (VIDEOS, PHOTOS)Despite warnings only weeks ago from health officials, including Fauci, that social distancing and lockdown orders were necessary to battle the spread of the coronavirus, many have changed their tune in light of the protests, arguing that issues of racism and police brutality supercede the pandemic.
“Let’s be clear about something: if there is a spike in coronavirus cases in the next two weeks, don’t blame the protesters. Blame racism,” Mark Levine, chairman of the New York City Council Health Committee, tweeted this week.
Let's be clear about something: if there is a spike in coronavirus cases in the next two weeks, don't blame the protesters.Blame racism.
— Mark D. Levine (@MarkLevineNYC) June 3, 2020
Gregg Gonsalves, an assistant professor of epidemiology, suggested in a long Twitter thread on Friday that criticisms of the protests over fears of Covid-19 should be treated as suspect because they come exclusively from “white men,” and he argued protesters are “balancing risks to their communities.”
Many of those I argued w were conservative commentators, but many were liberal academics as well. They were almost all white men. The theme from both was it is inconsistent to support social distancing and support these marches and is going to 'hurt' public health as a field. 2/
— Gregg Gonsalves (@gregggonsalves) June 6, 2020
The protesters are balancing competing risks to their communities, of COVID19, police violence and centuries of systemic racism, which has led to declining, but still large gaps in life expectancy, health and wellness among African Americans and their white counterparts. 10/
— Gregg Gonsalves (@gregggonsalves) June 6, 2020
Protests over Floyd’s death show no sign of stopping. While the four officers involved in his death have been charged, demonstrations continue around the country, with many planned for Saturday, including a memorial service in Raeford, North Carolina where Floyd was born. A march with his family was also announced to be heading to Washington DC in August.
If you like this story, share it with a friend!
