Written by William Hekman
Just two days after the state of California announced they would be re-implementing an indoor mask mandate, both Coronado and El Cajon mayors announced that their cities would not be enforcing the mandate.
The mandate goes into effect today and will be in effect until January 15th of 2022. California will also be increasing restrictions on unvaccinated people who attend “mega-events” of 1,000 people or more. The state is requiring a negative COVID test one day before the event if it is a rapid test and two days if it is a PCR test. State officials are also recommending that those who travel outside of California be tested for COVID. Many are questioning why the state is mandating masks again after we were promised that these mandates will end if people are vaccinated. The state has only created confusion and uncertainty along with vaccine hesitancy.
Coronado Mayor Richard Bailey announced that Coronado will not be enforcing the mask mandate. Bailey stated in an instagram post, “Coronado will not be actively enforcing the state’s new mask mandate. If the state wants enforcement, they should use their own resources.” Bailey also criticized Governor Newsom saying that he has no clear policy when it comes to COVID and that his power has gone unchecked for almost two years. Bailey also said that a lot of this is just “political theatre” from politicians who want to be seen as doing something.
In El Cajon, Mayor Bill Wells also announced that El Cajon will not be enforcing the mandate. Wells said, “I don’t see a scientific reason, and our city is not going to be enforcing any mask mandates.” Wells highlighted the fact that there were more cases in San Diego County in August than there were in November. There were 40,000 cases in August compared to 15,000 in November. There were also more hospitalizations in August than November. Wells has been against mask mandates since last year when he opposed another mandate from the state, “We’re not going to be chasing people down making them wear masks, we’re not going to be closing businesses cause they are not enforcing the mask mandate” said Wells.
More cities in San Diego County and in the state of California could follow what El Cajon and Coronado are doing in standing up to the state government for pushing a backwards policy. California should look at the numbers in counties before pushing a top-down policy that will in all likelihood not work.
Photo Cred: San Diego Explorer
