RTSat, 18 Apr 2020 23:50 UTC
Texans flocked to the state's Capitol in Austin to protest Covid-19 lockdown measures, refusing to practice social distancing and cheering for Dr. Anthony Fauci to be fired by President Donald Trump.
In attendance at Saturday's 'You Can't Close America' Rally were InfoWars founder Alex Jones and host Owen Shroyer, who led the crowd of some 200 people in chants against the mainstream media and officials like Fauci.
Shroyer, who referred to the doctor as "fascist Fauci," asked the crowd: "Do you think Anthony Fauci should be fired?", before leading them in chants of "Fire Fauci."
Fauci, who sits on the White House Coronavirus Task Force, has been seen by many on the right as being more in favor of extending lockdown and social distancing measures than the president in battling the spread of Covid-19.
Demonstrations against lockdown measures have occurred in other US states such as Michigan, and others are planned in places like Maine in the coming days. The Austin rally could be the most extreme yet, however, with video showing almost no attendees wearing medical masks and all present giving zero regard for social distancing.
The crowd also yelled
"CNN sucks" together when Shroyer pointed out the lack of mainstream media outlets in attendance.
Jones, a controversial figure who has been banned by platforms like Twitter and YouTube for the spreading of conspiracy theories, told the gathered crowd "all businesses are essential" and claimed "Texas is leading the way against the tyrants."
The crowd also chanted "let us work" on multiple occasions, and Shroyer admitted the lack of compliance with social distancing measures at the rally will likely lead to fines, but he hopes "Governor [Greg] Abbott will do the right thing" and throw them out.
Texas is one of the states that has announced they will be starting to reopen their economy in the coming days. Abbott promised on Friday he will be easing restrictions by reopening some parks, allowing all retail stores to provide pickup options, and allowing more elective surgeries in medical facilities. A
"statewide task force" will help advise him as Texas rolls back restrictive measures.
Comment: Berlin residents are getting restless as well -
hundreds of activists gathered on the Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz square in defiance of the Covid-19 lockdown measures, arguing the state is heading for authoritarian rule. The strong police response to the rally underscored their point! Also notable is that the gathering
brought people together with very different political views, as banners at the rally ranged from moderate pro-democracy calls to hard-line ones. Earlier this week, the country's Constitutional Court ruled that Germans have the right to hold political protests if they stick to social distancing rules. The
Constitutional Court deemed the blanket ban on protests to be unconstitutional, ordering the authorities to review such policies.
The police response:
As people begin asking questions about the
extreme response to this 'flu virus' there will likely be many more such rallies in the coming weeks:
Comment: Berlin residents are getting restless as well - hundreds of activists gathered on the Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz square in defiance of the Covid-19 lockdown measures, arguing the state is heading for authoritarian rule. The strong police response to the rally underscored their point! Also notable is that the gathering brought people together with very different political views, as banners at the rally ranged from moderate pro-democracy calls to hard-line ones. Earlier this week, the country's Constitutional Court ruled that Germans have the right to hold political protests if they stick to social distancing rules. The Constitutional Court deemed the blanket ban on protests to be unconstitutional, ordering the authorities to review such policies.
The police response:
As people begin asking questions about the extreme response to this 'flu virus' there will likely be many more such rallies in the coming weeks: