A group of people in Clearwater, Florida, did squats and pushups outside of a courthouse to demonstrate their frustration with gyms being closed during the coronavirus pandemic.
Flouting social distancing guidelines, about two dozen people gathered outside the Pinellas County Courthouse on Monday. Videos shared online showed some in the crowd doing exercises in between waving flags and signs protesting the shutdown, which began a month ago after Gov. Ron DeSantis issued a “safer-at-home order.”
Protesters in Clearwater, FL want gyms open now. pic.twitter.com/of0sj0x8or
— Outkick the Coverage (@Outkick) May 11, 2020
DeSantis’s order expired this month as the state began to reopen as part of phase one of Florida’s plan to reopen. Restaurants reopened last week with limited seating capacity, while barbershops and salons opened on Monday. Gyms are set to reopen at 75% capacity during phase two of the governor’s plan, but it is unclear when that phase will begin because the plan is driven by data on infection numbers.
Florida has had more than 40,000 cases of the virus and about 1,700 deaths since the pandemic began.
