Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms is astonished at the number of people who are no longer practicing social distancing and other safety guidelines amid the coronavirus pandemic.
“I was so taken aback this weekend when I saw so many people out,” she told MSNBC this weekend. “I thought that maybe something had changed, that maybe this still not a highly contagious virus that thousands of people were dying from each day.”
Atlanta Mayor Aghast At Number Of People Out Amid COVID-19 Pandemic
Indeed, one week after Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp “re-opened” the state, masses of people could be seen congregating in parks, outside busy streets and even in some restaurants.
All of which flies in the face of the guidelines issued by the Atlanta-based Centers of Disease Control & Prevention, which clearly has advised that people take the virus seriously by doing the following:
- Wearing a mask or face covering in close contact with others
- Standing at least 6 feet from one another
- Washing your hands more frequently and not touching common surfaces
“The reality in Georgia is that … many people heard what they wanted to hear, but my message is consistent: I am still encouraging people to stay home,”Lance Bottoms says.
Nowhere was her message more relevant than at Lenox Square mall, which opened its doors for the first time in more than a month on May 4.
Throngs of people were seen on social media waiting to enter the mall, which is one of many that has re-opened.
HAPPENING NOW— This is the line to get inside @LenoxSqMall. They are about to open for the first time since March 18th @11AliveNews pic.twitter.com/SRVThKIL0E
— Maura Sirianni 11Alive (@MauraSirianni) May 4, 2020
Lance Bottoms says the facts are that this is still a highly contagious virus, especially among African-Americans, who are dying disproportionately to others.
“When we look at other countries and see how they’ve gotten to the other side of this, it’s very simple: They’ve stayed in to flatten the curve. And we’re nowhere near there in Georgia.”
"I was so taken aback this weekend when I saw so many people out…I thought that maybe something had changed, that maybe this still not a highly contagious virus that thousands of people were dying from each day." Mayor @KeishaBottoms with @AriMelber on #COVID19 pic.twitter.com/tA0343eN3T
— City of Atlanta, GA (@CityofAtlanta) May 4, 2020
On CNN, Lance Bottoms says she is going to stand her ground despite what’s happening around Atlanta.
“What it really feels like to me is that there is this testing of the waters and willingness to sacrifice people for the economy. And I’m not willing to sacrifice my children or my mother, all of whom are asthmatic,” she says.
Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms is pushing back against GA Gov. Kemp’s reopening orders. “Nothing has changed about Covid-19… what it really feels like to me, anyway, is that there is this testing of the waters and willingness to sacrifice people for the sake of our economy.” pic.twitter.com/FMenD3JwYp
— CNN (@CNN) May 6, 2020
“I saw so many people over the weekend who had no consideration of putting themselves and others at risk,” she says.
CNN says one study found that more than 80% of those hospitalized in Georgia were African-American.
Responding to that, Lance Bottoms says, “We are continuing to provide resources to people .. but so much of it really is about education, education, education.”
"The feedback that I am receiving is that people are not ready for us to open back up." – Mayor @KeishaBottoms to @JovitaMoore on reopening Atlanta during the #COVID19 pandemic. pic.twitter.com/YqEvAIx26V
— City of Atlanta, GA (@CityofAtlanta) May 5, 2020
Atlantafi.com is bringing you the latest on the coronavirus pandemic, which has the state of Georgia and the city of Atlanta under a state of emergency. More definitive advice on health, please visit CDC.gov. Here are some helpful links:
