Culture

Bill de Blasio defends ongoing lockdown: Protesting and going to church 'not the same'


New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio on Tuesday defended his ongoing coronavirus-related restrictions on nonessential businesses and places of worship as protesters and looters continue to flood city streets over the death of George Floyd.

The democratic socialist told reporters during a press conference that the protesting and the desire to return to work and to church are “not the same” issues.

“When you see a nation, an entire nation, simultaneously grappling with an extraordinary crisis seeded in 400 years of American racism,” Mr. de Blasio said. “I’m sorry, that is not the same question as the understandably aggrieved store owner or the devout religious person who wants to go back to services.

“This is something that’s not about which side of the spectrum you’re on,” he continued. “It’s about a deep, deep American crisis. We have never seen anything quite like what we’ve seen in the few days. This is powerful, painful, historical moment.

“So, no,” he added. “I have eyes to see. We’re not going to treat it like it’s any other day, we’re not going to treat it like, ‘Why are people outside the bars’ and not notice that all of America is grappling simultaneously with a horrible crisis. Sorry, guys, there’s a world outside New York City. So, we’re dealing with this.”

The mayor has faced intense backlash in recent months for singling out the Jewish community for breaking lockdown measures on church gatherings. His comments Tuesday came after reporter Reuvain Borchardt from the Jewish newspaper Hamodia asked whether his support for the protesters signaled that he had “one set of rules for protesters and another for everyone else,” Fox News reported.

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