New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said Wednesday that there will be no more warnings for people gathering in large groups and that he will “use arrest” if necessary.
“If you gather — I’m not talking about a few friends hanging out in the corner — I am saying if you have a large gathering, hundreds of people, thousands of people, we’re not even going to have a discussion. We’re going immediately to summons and if we have to use arrest, we will use arrest.”
“You’ve heard in great detail telling people they can’t gather — from all religious communities — in their houses of worship .. That has been going on for weeks,” de Blasio told reporters at a news conference (RELATED: ‘No Penalty For Authoritarianism’: Tucker Carlson Blasts ‘Mediocre Politician’ Gretchen Whitmer’s ‘Power’ Grabs)
The mayor was responding to queries about his concerns over a Jewish funeral gathering that de Blasio said was an outrageous affront to the social distancing rules of the coronavirus crisis.
“So what is shocking to me is that after all the warnings, something of this size would happen. And that is where I am making very clear —unapologetically — that the next gathering will be met by summonses and arrests. Period. No more warnings,” he said.
“We have been talking about all of these dangers and the fact that we’re not going to tolerate them, and we’re going to enforce,” de Blasio told the assembled reporters. “That is why I am so angry.” (RELATED: ‘This Is Insanity’: Tucker Carlson Questions The ‘Science’ Behind The Shutdown)
De Blasio said it was important that people not “create confusion and division” over his lockdown order and insisted his fury over the Jewish funeral was just about keeping “their community” safe.
“What is so frustrating to me is after all of those messages were so clear that so many people would still choose to gather. I understand they lost someone very dear and important to them, but this is still a pandemic. People’s lives are put in danger when people gather,” the mayor said.
State and city lockdowns are increasingly leading to frustration and demonstrations from Americans who want to get back to work and resume normal life.
