Lindsey Weedston
Rather than follow the advice of health experts designed to save lives, Donald Trump is saying that he wants to “have the country opened up and raring to go by Easter.”
“Easter is a very special day for me,” he said to the press. “Easter Sunday, and you’ll have packed churches all over our country. I think it would be a beautiful time.”
Trump on why he picked Easter as the day he wants to end strict social distancing and reopen American businesses: “Easter is a very special day for me … Easter Sunday, and you’ll have packed churches all over our country.” pic.twitter.com/6cXEtW8LmR
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) March 24, 2020
It’s not going to be so beautiful when many of the people who attended Easter Sunday services get sick with the novel coronavirus.
While China will end the lockdown on Wuhan, where the novel coronavirus is believed to have started, in two weeks, it took over a month from the time the outbreak peaked in the region as well as very strict quarantine policy in order to get where they are now. The outbreak in the U.S. has yet to peak as more cases appear daily, and the response from the Trump administration has not been nearly as severe.
Waking up to find that @realDonaldTrump and many other people (?) feel that seniors such as me and @carlreiner , @WilliamShatner , @MelBrooks , @BettyMWhite , @Cloris_Leachman and millions of other seniors/people with underlying medical issues are expendable in a #ReopenAmerica
— Ed Asner (@TheOnlyEdAsner) March 24, 2020
Health experts have repeated that the point of social distancing and economic shutdowns is to spread out new cases as much as possible in order to prevent hospitals from becoming overwhelmed, minimizing deaths. The goal should be to extend these measures as long as possible, not get people back to work as soon as possible.
“We need to change the conversation from: ‘How inconvenient it is to me?’ to ‘Who are the people who are suffering most, and how can we help them?’” Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health Professor and chair of the department of immunology and infectious diseases Sarah Fortune said to the New York Times.
Trump, however, seems determined to “reopen” America.
“Our country is not built to shut down, our people are full of vim and vigor and energy, they don’t want to be locked into a house or apartment or some space,” Trump said during a Fox News town hall. “We’re not built that way.”
As a result, #ReopenAmerica started trending on Twitter, but on the bright side, a lot of people are using it to express an opposing opinion.
We're not even 10 days into a GLOBAL pandemic and we already have selfish, spoiled assholes crying to #ReopenAmerica. Yes, let's reopen America so we can unleash the full fury of an outbreak that will shut us down even longer (and worse) in the Fall. 🙄
— Charlie Oliver (@itscomplicated) March 24, 2020
100 years ago, Philadelphia decided to #ReopenAmerica, and the city was decimated.https://t.co/goWKqjh54G
— Dr Unburnt Poorman (@DrPoorman) March 24, 2020
#ReopenAmerica
— Justin Miner (@JustinNathani69) March 24, 2020
whose side are u on? pic.twitter.com/x5n4P9bzKv
Have to go get chemo today. I’m nervous. But if we #ReopenAmerica before its safe I’m not even gonna be able to go get this lifesaving treatment because it‘ll be too dangerous.
— Jen Curran (@jencurran) March 24, 2020
Our “president” thinks I’m expendable, but the only expendable person I see is him. #StayHome 🙏
#ReopenAmerica and You Will Kill Millions. #NotDying4WallStreet pic.twitter.com/b84fDkY5oz
— SocialistBoomer (@SocialistBoomer) March 24, 2020
Do not #ReopenAmerica. Humans shouldn't be sacrificed for your shallowness, selfishness, or stupidity. #NotDying4WallStreet pic.twitter.com/ddO7nBrPy7
— Mrs. Betty Bowers (@BettyBowers) March 24, 2020
You fools wanna “#ReopenAmerica” when they just locked down the entire country of India, with 18% of the WORLD’s population.#NotDying4WallStreet pic.twitter.com/afF5B1Mic9
— Anti-Fascist AWK (@AWKWORDrap) March 24, 2020
The United States is handling Coronavirus worse than any other country. Worst. The worst.
— JRehling (@JRehling) March 24, 2020
Look at what Hong Kong did. Do that. Don't do anything else.#StayAtHomeSaveLives
do NOT #ReopenAmerica pic.twitter.com/Z5mYaI6dSu
Killing Nana to own the Libs.#ReopenAmerica https://t.co/RnbPSHZL1h
— John Pavlovitz (@johnpavlovitz) March 24, 2020
#ReopenAmerica? You realize America is not some Chipotle with a diarrhea problem that just needs a brand new mop head. It is a country of 327.2 million people with a deadly pandemic spreading. Reopen your brain.
— Jeremy Newberger (@jeremynewberger) March 24, 2020
#ReopenYourBrain.