‘We cannot keep going this way.’ SLO County residents protest shelter-at-home
When Atascadero resident Fay Johnson’s neighbor called the county to file a complaint about her eight family members gathering for Easter dinner, she said the shelter-at-home order had gone too far.
“If that sheriff had come down my driveway and told me to disperse my party, they would have had to arrest me because I was not going to do that. I did everything I could to keep everybody safe,” Johnson said. “It’s just gone too far.”
On Sunday morning, she joined the 10 to 15 adults and children who gathered in downtown San Luis Obispo to protest the shelter-at-home order that has been in place locally since mid-March to slow the spread of coronavirus.
The San Luis Obispo protest comes after protests against the shelter-at-home-order were banned in the state’s capitol by Califonia Highway Patrol, according to the Sacramento Bee.
The local protest took place from 9 a.m. to noon in front of the San Luis Obispo County government center.
Most protesters wore masks and stood the recommended 6 feet apart to maintain social distancing, while holding signs with messages such as “Stop the destruction of our rights and our economy” and “Create a clear plan to reopen economy.” Several people cheered and honked as they drove by.
When a bike rider passing by asked why the protesters were wearing masks if they felt safe enough to end the shelter-at-home, a few people responded saying they wanted to respect others while still being heard.
Johnson said there likely would have been more protesters if the Facebook post promoting the event had not been removed from several local Facebook pages.
“The only reason there is not more people here today (is because) they keep taking the post down. It’s censorship, propaganda,” Johnson said. “I mean this is Nazi Germany, I just never seen anything like it.”
“When you talk about freedom of speech it’s almost like you don’t have it if you disagree. We have the right to peacefully protest,” she added.
Why SLO County residents are protesting shelter-at-home
Johnson, 70, is a nurse educator for Cuesta College. She said that she has lived through several pandemics, such as the H1N1 flu, but has not experienced such drastic measures to prevent the spread of an illness.
She said she is glad the country and county now have a plan in place in the event of future pandemics, but that the restrictions have gone too far.
“We’re used to our freedoms,” Johnson said. “You can’t keep us down forever.”
Several protesters, including Johnson, said while they understand why the shelter-at-home order was initially put into place, they feel that it is no longer a viable solution.
In San Luis Obispo County there are 166 confirmed cases of coronavirus as of Sunday, and 126 patients have recovered. One person has died locally from COVID-19.
While some at the protest said they felt that the county should reopen entirely, others were advocating for a phased reopening.
Los Osos resident Nathan Glazebrook said regardless of the community’s stance, it is time for the community to have a dialogue about reopening. He said the data shows that the county may no longer need such stringent orders.
“We’re seeing that the long-term effects of this are not being considered,” Glazebrook said. “There is no plan to reopen the economy and there needs to be.”
San Luis Obispo County has been developing a plan to phase out the shelter-at-home order once the governor allows for it.
In the meantime, the county has allowed eight sectors of business and activity to reopen while still remaining within the state and county guidelines. The county is also taking suggestions and feedback as to how to reopen.
Glazebrook said while that is a positive start, he feels the actions are not being taken fast enough.
“Reopening soon may not be soon enough, action needs to be taken immediately to save our economy,” Glazebrook said.
Glazebrook’s wife, Kendra, said she lost her three jobs due to the shelter-at-home order.
The couple said while they are financially stable at the moment, they are worried about what the future may bring and even more worried for those who are currently struggling.
“We already have an issue with the homeless population here. We already have issues with people who are financially strained, and all this has done is increased that burden,” Kendra said. “We’re not saying this isn’t a reality, we’re saying that the reaction to this reality is ignoring the preexisting realities that need to be addressed.”
Both he and Kendra said they do not want to force people out of their homes, but allow people who feel safe to do so to be able to return to work.
Like the Glazebrooks, protester and local business owner Tiffany Stamback said the reopening process is not happening quickly enough.
Stamback said she owns a private charter fishing company in Morro Bay. And while recreational fishing is permitted under the shelter-at-home order, she said the county told her that her business does not qualify to reopen.
“It’s our main income,” Stamback said. “It’s affected our purpose in life. We worked our butts off to get our business and now they’ve just taken away from us and its infringed on our constitutional right to provide for our family.”
Stamback, like other protesters, said it is unfortunate that people have died due to coronavirus, but the economic impact will affect many more people than the virus itself in the long run.
She and others also said they believe the virus may have come through the county earlier than detected so the regulations are no longer necessary. The county will not be able to confirm whether or not people may have had the virus and went undetected until antibody testing becomes more widely available.
Stamback, who did not wear a mask at the protest, said she would wear one if that is what it took to allow businesses to reopen.
“Fear is overwhelming people,” Stamback said. “We cannot keep going this way.”
San Luis Obispo County officials said they now have a plan to reopen, but it has not yet been made public.
This story was originally published April 26, 2020 at 3:16 PM.
