Protestors gathered in Downtown Vancouver Sunday afternoon to protest the mandatory wearing of masks in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Hosted by the group called March to Unmask, the demonstrations took place in multiple cities Canada-wide on Sunday, July 19. In Vancouver, protestors met at Jack Poole Plaza at 1 p.m. to listen to speeches. After that, they marched along Burrard Street down to Granville Street.
On the event's Facebook page, organizers state that, "The purpose is to raise awareness for the risks and dangers associated with wearing masks as well as to say NO to mandatory masks in general"
The group also remarks that, "Many people are being affected by mask restrictions; salon owners, business owners, customers, employees at work. We can't allow mandatory masks to be introduced into law."
The BC Centre for Disease Control states that masks can have a role to play in preventing the spread of COVID-19, especially for healthcare providers and for people that have COVID-19. This is because masks act as a barrier and help stop the spread of droplets from a person’s mouth and nose when talking, laughing, yelling, singing, coughing, or sneezing.
The BCCDC adds that, "Wearing a mask should be combined with other important preventative measures such as frequent hand washing and physical distancing. Using only a mask is not enough to prevent the spread of COVID-19."
Have a look at what some locals are saying about the anti-mask demonstration in the city as well as the philosophy behind the movement.
Anti-mask protesters: I’m recruiting for anti-rubber boots protests to be held in Vancouver. We’ll march on a rainy day in November wearing sandals. Nobody can make us keep our feet dry! Who’s with me? 😎
— Rick Knowlan (@strategyrick) July 20, 2020
Today I walked out of my ER to an anti-mask / anti-lockdown march out front. “Covid is a conspiracy!” one rabid protester yelled at me.
— Daniel Kalla (@DanielKalla) July 20, 2020
Man, would Darwin have had a field day with these clowns! If only their ignorance would just infect each other and not hurt the rest of us. pic.twitter.com/NiGcGbA0hh
Don’t understand an anti mask march here. It’s not like they’re mandatory in BC. I wear one out of social responsibility, but I don’t see any stores denying entry without one. To me, this anti-mask march doesn’t make any sense.🤦🏻♀️
— ✊🏻🌈 PalmerTheEmbalmer 📚💜 (@igotcurbappeal) July 20, 2020
@GlobalBC to these “anti-mask” protestors, please feel free to leave BC and go live down south where the covid#s reflect a non-mask environment, don’t let the door hit you... @keithbaldrey let the comments fly on the news next time, I could tell it was burning inside https://t.co/78yqYTvG9v
— Norm Prescott (@NormPrescott) July 20, 2020
Anti mask protest in Vancouver. They believe Bill Gates is attempting to create a world government
— Nadia (@CracklerNadia) July 20, 2020
Spotted downtown: anti-mask protest with chants of “Media lies”.
— Srushti Gangdev (@SrushtiGangdev) July 19, 2020
As a reminder, there is no law in BC requiring you to wear a mask at this point, no lockdown (I am writing this tweet from a socially distanced restaurant) and the right to protest is obviously being upheld here pic.twitter.com/kmn3jzISjh
We also had an anti-mask protest in Vancouver 🤦♀️🤦♀️.
— Meghan Callaway (@FitFastStrong) July 20, 2020
I wish anti mask people were able to understand scientific evidence
— Shane Nelson (@magicsteve_) July 20, 2020
Sounds like Burrard is blocked off northbound at Alberni due to this "anti-mask" march... https://t.co/4sUZBx2CvJ
— AM730Traffic (@AM730Traffic) July 19, 2020
Well this afternoon in #Vancouver the anti-mask march attracted about 50 people. On the good news side that about 499,950 fewer than attended the #ClimateChange march.
— JAMES ROBERTS (@JamesRobertsCBC) July 19, 2020
Faith in humanity is now partially restored. #bcpoli
The U.S. nowadays is full of "CRAZY" getting crazier. Unfortunately, like deadly American gun culture, anti-mask, anti-vax, etc. culture infects susceptible folks in other countries too, including its neighbors to the north.
— Hermesacat Bob (@Bobb999) July 16, 2020
The anti-mask people are extremely violent and I honestly don't understand why
— Felicity "ACAB" Crow (@felicity_acab) July 16, 2020
For the record, I’m not anti-mask, anti-sunglasses or anti-vaccine. It’s up to the individual adult to decide if they’re in a hazardous environment. If they’re concerned, they should simply use the appropriate protection. Mandatory outdoor mask wearing is for psychological effect
— Chandler 🌏 (@toffachandler) July 20, 2020
You do realize that every country that did a national lockdown, and did it right, have been promoting social distancing and have a high number of people wearing masks have had COVID-19 cases go down, while the USA keeps going up rapidly? So disappointing to see you’re anti-mask.
— Sarah W. Fox (@thesarahwfox) July 20, 2020
A new poll finds that the majority of Canadians believe government should make the wearing of face masks mandatory in public places.
According to a new Ipsos poll conducted for Global News, 79% of Canadians agree that masks should be made mandatory in public places (42% strongly/ 37% somewhat). However, support for enforcing this measure varies greatly across the country.
Residents in Saskatchewan and Manitoba (84%), B.C. (83%), Ontario (83%) and Quebec (80%) are significantly more likely than those in Alberta (66%) and Atlantic Canada (64%) to support this measure. Ipsos notes that, "The gap is largely driven by an urban-rural divide: 80% of urban-dwellers support this type of policy, while 67% of rural Canadians support it."
Read more HERE.
