Photos circulating on social media Sunday of large crowds outside Tuscaloosa bars and people wearing no masks drew national attention and the ire of an offensive Alabama lineman, athletic director Greg Byrne and city mayor Walt Maddox.
The most prominent voice in the state, Nick Saban, was asked during his video news conference Monday about the issue and added his perspective.
“I think democracy is great, and I think people who have all these freedoms, I think everything is great,” Saban said. ‘But I think there’s one thing that’s probably a common name that really does all that work, and that people have great moral integrity in the choices and decisions they make.
“I do not criticize anyone here, but many people have asked them to wear masks when we are in public – when we are in crowds, when we are in large groups of people, that we remain socially distant. I do not think they are just doing it for the sake of it. I think there’s a reason for that. We try to control the spread of this disease. ”
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Saban, who published announcements about public services wearing masks through the university in March and again in May, continued to associate COVID-19 rules with a chance to play football this fall.
“I think our ability to do that will go a long way to see if we can play football or not,” he said. ‘But bigger than that, it’s just your own personal bubble for your own personal safety. Each of these students to take good care of themselves and take the proper protocols that people recommend for your safety. I just think this is the smartest thing to do. ”
Additional police were called to work Sunday to help enforce mask laws. Tuscaloosa police issued 12 citations and made four arrests for prosecutors, including mass violations, obstruction of justice and resistance to arrest.
The owner of Gallettes, a popular bar on the Strip, said his establishment “did nothing wrong” and followed applicable laws in response to the decline on social media.
Mike Rodak is an Alabama beat reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @mikerodak.