{"id":50603,"date":"2021-01-31T14:12:21","date_gmt":"2021-01-31T18:12:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/?p=50603"},"modified":"2021-01-31T14:14:34","modified_gmt":"2021-01-31T18:14:34","slug":"huge-anti-vax-protesters-courageously-shut-down-dodger-stadium-vaccination-site","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/?p=50603","title":{"rendered":"HUGE! Anti-Vax Protesters Courageously Shut Down Dodger Stadium Vaccination Site"},"content":{"rendered":"

Dodger Stadium\u2019s COVID-19 vaccination site temporarily shut down after protesters gather at entrance<\/h1>\n

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Shop Mask Free Los Angeles organized a protest Saturday at the Dodger Stadium COVID-19 vaccination site, rallying against the vaccines, masks and lockdowns.(Irfan Khan \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p><\/div><\/p>\n

By MARISA GERBER, IRFAN KHAN
\nLos Angeles Times<\/p>\n

Dodger Stadium\u2019s mass COVID-19 vaccination site was temporarily shut down Saturday afternoon when about 50 protesters gathered at the entrance, frustrating hundreds of motorists who had been waiting in line for hours.<\/p>\n

The Los Angeles Fire Department closed the entrance to the stadium \u2014 one of the largest vaccination sites in the country \u2014 for about an hour starting just before 2 p.m. as a precaution, officials said. Several LAPD officers also responded to the scene; a spokeswoman for the department said no arrests were made.<\/p>\n

Andrea Garcia, a spokeswoman for Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, said that despite the 55-minute interruption, no appointments were canceled.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe remain committed to vaccinating Angelenos as quickly and safely as possible,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

The demonstrators included members of anti-vaccine and far-right groups. While some carried signs decrying the COVID-19 vaccine and shouting for people not to get the shots, there were no incidents of violence.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is completely wrong,\u201d said German Jaquez, who drove from his home in La Verne and had been waiting an hour for his vaccination when the stadium\u2019s gates were closed. He said some of the protesters were telling people in line that the coronavirus was not real and that the vaccination was dangerous.<\/p>\n

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German Jaquez, a dentist from Laverne, asks authorities to open the gates and resume vaccination at Dodger Stadium. He had been waiting for weeks to get an appointment.<\/div>\n
(Irfan Khan\/Los Angeles Times)<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cThis is the wrong message,\u201d Jaquez said. \u201cI\u2019ve been waiting for weeks to get an appointment. I am a dentist; I am taking a big risk being around patients. I want to be safe for my patients and for my family. The vaccine is the only way to beat the virus.\u201d<\/p>\n

Confirmed\u00a0coronavirus cases in California<\/a>\u00a0have surpassed 3.2 million. More than 40,000 people \u2014 one out of every 1,000 Californians \u2014\u00a0have died<\/a>\u00a0from complications of COVID-19. The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health\u2019s official death toll stands at 16,647 after 316 fatalities were confirmed Saturday, along with more than 6,900 new cases.<\/p>\n

A Fire Department official said the Dodger Stadium vaccination site \u2014 which is usually open Monday through Saturday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. \u2014 reopened a few minutes before 3 p.m.<\/p>\n

A post on social media described the demonstration as the \u201cScamdemic Protest\/March.\u201d It advised participants to \u201cplease refrain from wearing Trump\/MAGA attire as we want our statement to resonate with the sheeple. No flags but informational signs only.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a sharing information protest and march against everything COVID, Vaccine, PCR Tests, Lockdowns, Masks, Fauci, Gates, Newsom, China, digital tracking, etc.\u201d<\/p>\n

A\u00a0livestreamed video<\/a>\u00a0of the gathering shows a group of protesters on a sidewalk as cars navigate cone-lined lanes toward the stadium, which served as a\u00a0COVID-19 testing site<\/a>\u00a0for months. A Times photographer witnessed much of the incident.<\/p>\n

Protesters carried signs that read \u201cSave Your Soul TURN BACK NOW,\u201d \u201cCNN IS LYING TO YOU,\u201d \u201cRECALL GAVIN NEWSOM\u201d and \u201cTAKE OFF YOUR MASK.\u201d Some handed out pamphlets to motorists who had their windows down. Some cars blared their horns as they drove by.<\/p>\n

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A protest organized by Shop Mask Free Los Angeles rally against COVID vaccine, masks and lockdowns at Dodger Stadium.<\/div>\n
(Irfan Khan\/Los Angeles Times)<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

Protesters spoke through bullhorns: \u201cTurn back while you can,\u201d one man said. \u201cYou\u2019re a lab rat.\u201d<\/p>\n

Public officials swiftly weighed in, expressing frustration.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe will not be deterred or threatened,\u201d Gov. Gavin Newsom\u00a0tweeted<\/a>. \u201cDodger Stadium is back up and running.\u201d<\/p>\n

Los Angeles Deputy Mayor Jeff Gorell, who oversees public safety for Garcetti,\u00a0tweeted<\/a>\u00a0a Times article about the closure, writing, \u201cIts back open, but ..\u201d and adding a \u201cface palm\u201d emoji.<\/p>\n

\u201cUnbelievable,\u201d Los Angeles City Council President\u00a0Nury Martinez tweeted<\/a>. \u201cIf you don\u2019t want the vaccine fine, but there are millions of Angelenos that do. 16,000 of your neighbors have died, so get out of the way.\u201d<\/p>\n

About an hour after the vaccination site reopened Saturday, health officials released a statement warning that\u00a0variants of the coronavirus<\/a>\u00a0continue to spread in L.A. County, noting that a second case of the highly transmissible U.K. variant B.1.1.7 has been confirmed locally.<\/p>\n

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\"A<\/p>\n
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LAFD Capt. Tommy Kitahata directs traffic after resumption of vaccinations, which were halted when protesters approached the gates of Dodger Stadium.<\/div>\n
(Irfan Khan \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cVirus transmission can happen more easily,\u201d health officials said, urging members of the public to wear masks that cover the nose and mouth, maintain physical distance and avoid gathering with people they don\u2019t live with.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese strategies,\u201d officials said, \u201cwill only be effective in slowing the spread of any variant strain of COVID-19 if they are used by everyone all of the time.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Dodger Stadium incident marked the latest protest by small groups opposed to basic coronavirus safety measures such as face coverings.<\/p>\n

Following demonstrations by anti-mask groups at shopping malls, grocery stores and homeless encampments, the Los Angeles City Council earlier this month bolstered restrictions and subjected some violators to financial penalties. Following a unanimous vote, the council ordered city attorneys to draft a law that would\u00a0impose fines and penalties<\/a>\u00a0on those who refused to wear a mask at indoor businesses when requested to do so by management, as well as on individuals who refuse to wear one when \u201cinvading someone\u2019s personal space.\u201d<\/p>\n

Earlier in the pandemic, maskless demonstrators gathered at retail outlets, including Erewhon Market in the Fairfax district, a Target on Beverly Boulevard and the Westfield Century City mall,\u00a0sparking a backlash<\/a><\/u>\u00a0from shoppers and employees who felt harassed.<\/p>\n

In\u00a0one video<\/a>, a demonstrator said he had tested negative for the virus and called a customer at the grocery store a \u201cmask Nazi.\u201d<\/p>\n

After the Century City demonstration, Garcetti issued a warning.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe won\u2019t have officers who are standing by witnessing that. We will take action,\u201d the mayor said. \u201cAnd don\u2019t test us on this, because you will find yourself in jail, cited or dealing with prosecution.\u201d<\/p>\n

Times staff writer Dakota Smith contributed to this report.<\/i><\/p>\n

___
\nhttps:\/\/www.latimes.com\/california\/story\/2021-01-30\/dodger-stadiums-covid-19-vaccination-site-shutdown-after-dozens-of-protesters-gather-at-entrance<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Dodger Stadium\u2019s COVID-19 vaccination site temporarily shut down after protesters gather at entrance<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-50603","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50603","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=50603"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50603\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=50603"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=50603"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=50603"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}