Black Lives Matter protests haven't led to COVID-19 spikes. It may be due to people staying home.

[SunSeeker]

Source: NBC News

There is no evidence yet that the wave of Black Lives Matter protests across the U.S. sparked COVID-19 outbreaks in the more than three weeks since they began, according to a study published Monday by the National Bureau of Economic Research.

Rather, as the protests went on, people who were not participating increasingly stayed at home, possibly counteracting any effects the large gatherings may have had on the spread of the virus, the researchers concluded.

The paper, which was posted online and is not yet peer reviewed, looked at data from 315 cities across the country. Of those, 281 cities had protests and 34 did not.In
...
New York City, health officials have not seen a recent spike in emergency room visits or hospitalizations, according to a statement from Dr. Oxiris Barbot, the city’s health commissioner. Still, she added: "Staying inside is the safest way to prevent the spread of COVID-19. If you do go out, our message is to wear face coverings; be diligent about washing hands; and certainly, when at all possible, maintain 6 feet of distance from your fellow New Yorkers.”

Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/black-lives-matter-protests-haven-t-led-covid-19-spikes-n1232045

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The vast majority of protestors did in fact wear masks, which probably helped keep the numbers down, unlike my maskless Republican neighbors here in Orange County, CA, which is seeing a huge spike in Covid-19 cases despite little if any BLM protests in the county. Compare that to New York, which had large protests yet no spike.

[LizBeth]

1. Strongest majority by far wear a mask in the protests I have seen.

[catbyte]

2. It helped that they were all outside, too. Must less risky than inside with recirculating air.

[louzke9]

7. RE: Recirculating air.

Here is a study how indoor recirculating air helped spread the virus. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/20/health/airflow-coronavirus-restaurants.html

[Salviati]

3. Yeah, at the Juneteenth march I was at last friday, I don't believe I saw a single person...

... who wasn't wearing a mask.

[SunSeeker]

4. Good!

[JI7]

5. It was mostly young people . I know they can still infect others

but maybe most of them live with other young people or alone.

protests were also outside and most people were wearing masks.

But it does show the importance of wearing a mask .

[KY_EnviroGuy]

6. Because they're outdoors, protesters biggest risk is hand to face contact.

Lots of hugging and hand shaking I'm sure and there probably is some spread during protests. However, nothing like the rate of spread from uncontrolled church meetings, rowdy nights in bars and big crowds in stores, restaurants, gyms and such venues in red states.

I feel our protesters were quite responsible all things considered and wish them all good health.

KY.........

[Squinch]

8. Masking works.

[LiberalArkie]

9. High UV everywhere

[rocktivity]

10. Well, duh dot com

Social distancing alone might work if EVERYONE lived alone. But for people who are already infected but don't know it, it's just an opportunity to spread it to those we live with. In the absence of a vaccine or antidote, masking and social distancing work in conjunction with finding and properly quarantining the infected is the answer.


rocktivity

[LeftInTX]

11. Hays County, Texas (just south of Austin)is having one of the highest spikes. And it's young people

Also the spikes in Bexar County are young people.

No one knows exactly what the young people were doing, but there are rivers, protests and bars involved in the mix. At this time of the year, normally young people congregate in rivers and bars. Tubing is extremely popular.

Wearing a mask in this heat is almost next to impossible. No one can understand what I'm saying when I'm wearing a mask.

HAYS COUNTY, Texas — Hays County broke a new record Tuesday after reporting 155 new COVID-19 cases in a single day, according to health officials.

During a press conference Wednesday afternoon, Hays County epidemiologist Eric Schneider announced 58% of the new cases reported since June 10 are people ages 20 to 29 and are residents of San Marcos.

Additionally, Schneider said the main contact points for the new cases are protests, floating rivers and bars in San Marcos, Austin or San Antonio.
https://www.kvue.com/article/news/local/hays-county-breaks-record-for-new-daily-covid-19-cases/269-505e7707-6ae5-45dc-9e7a-203723b7962f

[Larissa]

12. Recirculating Air

louzke9, thanks loads for the link to the NYT's article re: circulating air. I've been looking for this specific information for months. Even though New Jersey -- my state -- opened up the hair salons this week, I was hesitant to go. My gut was in knots. The work I would have done on my hair could have taken hours. I didn't like the scenario of waiting in a closed space with a number of other salon clients for possibly hours. I could not see a client sitting under a hot dryer while keeping their face mask in place. Off comes the mask and, if the client is infected unbeknownst, the coronavirus and its siblings hikes rides in the gusts of hot air rising to the ceiling, then parachuting down into the salon.