A protest organizer in South Carolina said it will postpone future protests after at least 13 people who participated in recent protests tested positive for the coronavirus.
With the cases increasing in the USA. USA After reversals of state closure policies, an increase in testing, as well as protests across the country, Lawrence Dishawn Nathaniel urged those who attended previous rallies to get tested.
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Protesters and police clash in Columbia, SC, Sunday. People protested the police brutality caused by the death of George Floyd at the hands of the police in Minneapolis on May 25 (Jason Lee / The Sun News via AP)
Nathaniel has helped lead protests across the state for the past month through an initiative called I Can’t Breathe SC, following the death of George Floyd in police custody. He also founded a community nonprofit organization, People Demand Action.
He said the infected attended the protests May 30 to June 17 in Columbia, Charleston and Greenville. Four organizers, three photographers and six protesters tested positive.
“We are canceling all protests,” he said. “We must do our part, so if you’re going out, make sure you have your mask, make sure you have your hand sanitizer.”
Nathaniel said they will make online and virtual advocacy efforts. He asked community leaders to do the same.
Experts have debated whether the protests can increase the spread of the virus, with a study published in the National Bureau of Economic Research finding that they had little effect on the recent spike in cases, even though many were seen meeting closely together. proximity, with some yelling and screaming. The study added that the protests were likely to cause an increase in the spread of COVID-19 among attendees.
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Dr. Anthony Fauci, the country’s leading disease expert, said the protests and the reopening of the economy too soon could be the perfect recipe for a surge in cases.
Vice President Mike Pence said Monday that younger people, seen as most of those who attended recent protests across the country, are increasingly yielding positive results for COVID-19. The virus also affects the African American community at a disproportionate rate.
“We are seeing more people test positive for those under 35, particularly in our conversations with leaders in Florida and Texas,” Pence said in a conference call with state governors on Monday, reported by ABC News.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the younger population has the potential to spread the virus to older people or those with pre-existing conditions, considered to be the most vulnerable to the virus.
“The recent growth appears to be primarily due to the increase in cases in younger age groups, especially those between the ages of 21 and 40,” experts from the University of Texas Southwest Medical Center said in an analysis published Monday, according to The Washington Post. “In June, 50 percent of patients hospitalized with COVID-19 and 30 percent of ICU patients were under the age of 50.”
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The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control reported a record increase in daily cases over the past week.
The state has seen more than 25,666 confirmed cases of coronavirus and at least 659 deaths from the virus as of early Tuesday morning, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
