A Houston nightclub “mask removal” party, scheduled for early Wednesday to celebrate Texas by withdrawing Covid-19 mandates across the state, has local leaders fearing another increase in coronavirus cases.
Concrete Cowboy is telling customers to come to the bar at 12:01 pm on Wednesday for the “mask out” party, complete with bottles of Veuve and Gray Goose, for $ 100 and $ 150, respectively, said Mayor Sylvester Turner and State Representative Ann Johnson.
Parliamentarians released the image of an announcement of the party, which appears to have been posted on an Instagram story. But those posts disappear after 24 hours and there were no signs of that pamphlet on the club’s website, Facebook and Instagram on Monday morning.
Turner and Johnson said that such celebrations will lead to an increase in Covid’s cases and called on Concrete Cowboy to cancel the party.
“We are not dumping grounds for events that will put Texans in danger and cause people to lose their lives,” Turner told reporters on Sunday.
A Concrete Cowboy representative was not immediately available for comment on Monday.
“This is a dangerous and irresponsible event that is literally a slap in the face for our healthcare professionals who are risking their lives, those family members who lost loved ones and all Houstonians who honor the sanctity of life before they succeed. an expensive cocktail, “said Johnson.
“I applaud the responsible bar owners, who are enjoying this moment and doing it right.”
Governor Greg Abbott announced last week that the Lone Star state would be fully open for business, with no state laws mandating masks.
Its executive order seems to allow local jurisdictions with a high load of Covid cases to institute masked warrants – but it prevents them from using fines or imprisonment to enforce them.
A spokeswoman for Mayor Turner told NBC News on Monday that city attorneys are still reviewing Abbott’s order to determine what power, if any, local governments may still have to enforce Covid’s protocols.
More than 527,000 Americans died from Covid-19 early Monday morning, according to the NBC News count.
Texas, the second most populous state in the union, lost more than 45,000 lives to the virus, representing a rate of 157 per 100,000 residents. The country’s most populous state, California, has lost more than other jurisdictions – about 54,000, a rate of 137 per 100,000.
And more than 14 percent of Covid-19 tests are currently testing positive in Texas, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. Only five states and Puerto Rico have higher rates.
