The California city of Atwater with 30,000 residents has declared itself a sanctuary from Governor Newsom’s ‘stay-at-home’ policies. They’ve gone rogue and they’re a sanctuary for all businesses.
The rural Central Valley city of Atwater has declared itself a “sanctuary city” for businesses and churches that want to reopen in defiance of the California shelter-in-place policy aimed at curbing the spread of the coronavirus.
The City Council heard from a parade of business owners, pastors and residents on Friday who described pandemic-related hardships. Many insisted they could be responsible and keep the community safe by following safe practices like wearing face masks and keeping social distance.
A tearful Donald Covington, president of the Old Town Atwater Association, said businesses need to get up and running. “People are starving. Two family members have two small businesses, with small children and no income,” he added. “We need to do this today.”
“If they don’t open up, they’re going to be in a really bad state, and we’re going to have bankruptcies and foreclosures and we’re just going to have families that are decimated financially,” said Chamber of Commerce President Don Borgwardt, who is also a local pastor and made a plea for people to be allowed back inside houses of worship.
People in California are very frustrated with Gavin Newsom’s impossible demands. Now he’s demanding zero deaths before he opens. The criteria has become impossible to meet.
The mayor has had enough.
“It’s time to do the right thing and listen to the people who put us here,” Mayor Paul Creighton said. “We want you guys to survive and thrive. It’s really critical that the electeds in this country and especially this state start listening to you.”
The message is businesses should follow the guidelines but they need to open.
What do you think?
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