Close to 40 people gathered Sunday (Nov. 22) outside Cherry Lane Mall in Penticton to protest the measures that have been implemented to control the spread of COVID-19.
The crowd of unmasked individuals hit the street after a pep-talk from the rally鈥檚 main organizer. Multiple passing cars honked in support of 鈥渆nding the lock-down.鈥�
Approximately 40 unmasked people gathered outside Cherry Lane Mall in Penticton Sunday afternoon to protest the measures in place to control the spread of COVID-19. This marks the first official anti-lockdown protest staged in Penticton.
鈥� Jesse Day (@jessewilliamday)
Many protesters cited unsubstantiated claims about the virus and the belief that their 鈥渞ights are being violated鈥� as reasons for their attendance.
The rally鈥檚 organizer David Lindsay said his group 鈥淐LEAR鈥� has staged other rallies previously in 琉璃神社. Lindsay also said the protesters in Penticton plan to demonstrate every weekend until the measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus are lifted by the provincial government.
鈥淥ur goal is to 鈥� let them know that we are not wearing masks and not complying with their order. Period,鈥� Lindsay said.
The protest comes as coronavirus cases in B.C. and across Canada have hit all-time highs. On Thursday, Nov. 19 the B.C. government announced that masks are now mandatory in all public indoor spaces and restricted non-essential travel, among other measures to prevent the spread of the virus.
As of Sunday (Nov. 22) morning, there have been more than 325,711 cases of COVID-19 in Canada since the pandemic began, with 11,406 total deaths attributed to the virus in Canada. Five hundred fifteen Canadians have died from the virus in the last week.
According to federal government data, there are 53,907 cases currently active in the country.
B.C. has so far seen a total of 25,474 cases, with 331 total deaths.
As of Friday (Nov 20), there were 7,122 active cases of the virus across the province including 227 patients in hospital, of whom 57 were in intensive care.
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jesse.day@pentictonwesternnews.com
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