Many Georgia residents were shocked when state Governor Brian Kemp announced via press conference that some portions of the state would be reopened as early as April 24th. Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms was unaware of this development and responded to the reopening by urging Atlanta residents to “please stay home.”
In an interview with Atlanta news station WSBTV, Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms explained in detail why she believes Governor Kemp’s reopening of Georgia is entirely too premature—and also why she’s worried about the health and safety of state residents.
Mayor Bottoms stated:
“I saw the announcement watching Channel 2 like the rest of Georgia. I didn’t know it was coming and obviously the governor is the governor and he certainly has the prerogative to make orders that he deems appropriate. He did not consult with me. I don’t know what the reasoning and data that the governor used to make this decision was, because I have not spoken with him, but I did not know in advance.”
She continued, adding:
“The governor and I have traditionally had a very good working relationship so with all due respect I can say I don’t agree with this order. But again, I don’t know what the governor is basing this on. To the extent that we’ve had any success with numbers, I would venture to say it’s because we’ve been very aggressive in the actions that we’ve taken. What I know is that we still are not testing asymptomatic and people with mild symptoms, so I don’t think we have a very clear picture of what our real numbers are.”
In response to the reopening, Mayor Bottoms has created a fund specifically for Atlanta hairstylists and barbers to help them financially as the city continues to shelter in place, she hopes that this will stop them from feeling the need to get back to work. She put up the initial amount for the fund with $10,000 of her own money.
She also noted that she understands the urge to get your hair done, stating “You get your hair done, I get my hair done. I don’t know how you socially distance when someone is doing your hair or doing your nails, giving you a massage. These things are concerning to me. I do hope that I’m wrong and the governor is right. Because if he’s wrong, more people can die.”
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