Outraged protesters took to the streets and set face masks on fire to demonstrate the newest restrictions imposed in the state of California.
The protest took place in Huntington Beach, Orange County, where angry residents marched down the Pacific Coast Highway to protest the freshly-imposed curfew that forces people to stay at home from 10 pm to 5 am unless they have an emergency, are buying food or medicines, or are walking their dogs.
During the demonstration, protesters were seen flaunting American flags and cheering as they started a fire and began burning face masks.
“Burn the mask! Burn the mask! Burn the mask!” the protesters chanted as they gathered around the fire and encouraged people to burn their face masks.
The demonstration followed after a surge of coronavirus cases in California and after Governor Gavin Newsom announced the one-month-long curfew.
Besides grocery shoppers, dog walkers, and those in need of emergency, essential workers are also exempt from the curfew.
“The limited stay-at-home order does not apply to employees deemed essential workers – manufacturing is listed as an essential workforce,” the Department of Public Health explained.
According to the reports, the new restriction applies to 41 out of 58 counties in The Golden State. The affected counties reportedly account for 94% of the population in California.
Despite the curfew, plenty of law enforcement officials vowed to take an educational approach rather than focusing on enforcing the curfew.
“We’re not going to enforce any of those orders. The Kings County Board of Supervisors has asked us to take an educational approach. We’re going to refer people to the written guidelines to prevent the spread,” Commander David Dodd of the Kings County Sheriff’s Office said.
According to KMPH-TV, Fresno County Sheriff Margaret Mims explained they’re “not gonna make criminals of normally law abiding citizens” amid a surge in other obligations they have.
Replaced!