Peaceful protesters support BLM in Tulsa

[struggle4progress]

1. Campaign blames protesters for disappointing turnout

... Trump skipped a planned appearance outside of the BOK Center in Tulsa, Okla., which Campaign Spokesman Tim Murtaugh blamed on "radical protestors, coupled with a relentless onslaught from the media," who "attempted to frighten off the President’s supporters" ...

Reporters on the scene .. denied seeing large numbers of people turned away from the overflow stage. Inside the 20,000-person BOK Center, meanwhile, whole sections of the arena remained empty. Health experts had issued increasingly stark warnings in the lead up to the rally, while a June 15 editorial in the Tulsa World argued it was "the wrong time" to hold a campaign gathering ...

While trying to sidestep the politics of the rally, local health officials continued to remind Oklahoma residents and other rallygoers of the dangers of large-scale events during the Covid-19 pandemic. “As outlined by the CDC, individuals looking to attend any large-scale gathering will face an increased risk of becoming infected with Covid-19 and becoming a transmitter of this novel virus,” a spokesman for the Oklahoma State Department of Health said in a statement ahead of the event ...

https://www.politico.com/news/2020/06/20/trump-rally-tulsa-coronavirus-reset-2020-campaign-330248