Trump-Supporting Protestor Yells “Go to China” at Frontline Nurse

More than 36,000 people have died from the coronavirus in the U.S. alone, and more than 753,000 people have been infected. Yet, some people are demanding that businesses should reopen, and their biggest cheerleader is President Donald Trump. 

Last week, the president released a campaign to “reopen America” and instructed on how that would look by breaking down the various phases. He also didn’t say when this plan would be implemented because the virus is nowhere near being contained. There’s also no generalized testing being done. State governors will instruct their plan to open, so Trump gave his idea a little push on Twitter. He tweeted, “liberate Virginia,” “liberate Michigan,” “liberate Minnesota.” 

https://twitter.com/mollycrabapple/status/1252017501900324864

For a week, people have been rallying in various cities in the country, protesting the state government to reopen. The issue escalated over the weekend in Denver, where people protested in their cars, causing a significant backup. Photographer Alyson McClaran captured a moving image that went viral overnight, which shows a white woman shouting outside her truck, holding a sign “land of the free.” In front of the car is a man in sunglasses, a mask, and in full medical scrubs, not allowing the vehicle to pass. Several other medical personnel did the same. 

In another video, posted online, the same white woman is heard shouting at the medical worker, saying, “This is a free country. Land of the free. Go to China if you want communism. Go to China.”

This video of a nurse who is on the frontlines of this pandemic being told to “go to China” has gotta be the most insane thing I’ve seen on Twitter dot com in the 11 years I’ve been on this platform. And I used to report ISIS accounts for a living.pic.twitter.com/5E4Hi6P7DR

— Mari Manoogian (@MariManoogian) April 20, 2020

“Health care workers stand in the street in counter-protest to hundreds of people who gathered at the State Capitol to demand the stay-at-home order be lifted in Denver, Colo., on Sunday, April 19, 2020. Photos by Alyson McClaran,” she posted. 

In an interview with the New York Times, McClaran said that the protestors were being hostile toward the medical workers. 

“They were blocking the roads until the police force stepped in,” McClaran said. “People were putting their cars right up against them.”

According to the Times, Trump denied that his words did not incite violence but that his tweets were showing them support, “They have got cabin fever. They want their life back. Their life was taken away from them.”

In the South, a handful of governors have already proceeded to reopen their state by implementing a plan to transition into opening retail and beaches. In Florida, the mayor of Jacksonville has reopened the beach allowing countless people to flock back to the shores.