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Coronavirus

‘Sacrifice the weak’ and ‘Give me liberty’: Signs at coronavirus protests across US

Protesters opposed to coronavirus restrictions imposed by government officials have marched at capitol buildings and cities across the U.S. as the pandemic continues.

They’re calling on state and local officials to end stay-at-home orders and relax social distancing guidelines as job losses hit historic levels and businesses shut down. Meanwhile, people continue to die from COVID-19, and infectious disease experts warn reopening the the country too early could mean an even higher death toll.

As of Tuesday, more than 43,000 people in the U.S. had died from the virus, according to Johns Hopkins University.

Here are signs protesters hoisted in the air at recent uprisings, from one urging “Sacrifice the weak” to others saying “Give me liberty,” a line from the Patrick Henry speech demanding American colonists be free from the British in 1775.

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A protester at the Tennessee capitol held a sign that said “Sacrifice the weak,” reopen TN, WZTV reported.

Here are other signs from the Tennessee protest in photos taken by a journalist for The Tennessean.

In Olympia, Washington, a protester’s sign stated “Give me liberty or give me COVID-19” and another said “#EndTheShutdown,” according to a tweet from a Seattle TV reporter. About 1,000 people gathered at the Washington state capitol during the protest, The Olympian reported.

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Here’s are views from a CNN reporter at a protest in front of the capitol building in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, on Monday.

In Minnesota, protesters outside the governor’s mansion had signs that stated “God gave us an immune system for a reason” and “If ballots don’t free us, bullets will,” according to photos from a Minnesota Public Radio photojournalist.

About 400 to 500 protesters gathered Tuesday at the state capitol in Jefferson City, Missouri, according to a KMBC reporter.

About 100 demonstrators gathered in Huntington Beach, California, including a protester in face mask and goggles with a sign saying “COVID-19 is a lie.”

A crowd gathered in Austin, Texas, for a rally attended by Infowars conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, according to a New York Times reporter. Jones organized the protest, the Dallas Morning News reported.

Despite the demonstrations across the country, polling has found about 60 percent Americans oppose anti-lockdown protests, McClatchy News reported. Another poll found 65% of Americans do not think gatherings of 10 or more people will be safe until the end of June, McClatchy reported.

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Chacour Koop is a Real-Time reporter based in Kansas City. Previously, he reported for the Associated Press, Galveston County Daily News and Daily Herald in Chicago.
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