| Greenville News
A protest challenging Governor Henry McMaster’s emergency order by closing non-essential deals is planned for Friday in Columbia.
NEW: Watch live coverage of the protest to reopen companies in South Carolina
Organizers asked participants at the Drive to Thrive demonstration to stay inside their vehicles while driving through the streets of Columbia at lunchtime and to use the horns or signals to make a statement.
They want to prove that Southern Carolinians can maintain social distancing guidelines if the governor fully reopens all companies, said Kenna Cabanas, a small businesswoman from Williamston and one of the event’s organizers.
Cabanas believes that the people of South Carolina can run their businesses in ways that keep people safe.
“We don’t care about the economy more than we care about lives,” she said, but “many lives depend on that money.”
The Columbia event comes days after protesters challenged coronavirus orders across the country, from Arizona to Wisconsin and North Carolina.
In addition to doula, Cabanas is a photographer, someone who offers support and guidance during pregnancy and childbirth. With the shutdown, his photography business was interrupted and his doula clients faced new uncertainties and fears. It is now focused on childcare services to make up for lost income.
She is not alone. Many people in her network own businesses that have been closed by government orders or are employed by closed companies, and their families are suffering, she said.
Drive to Thrive is a popular effort by three Upstate residents who have connected via Facebook groups, said Cabanas. She said she is not associated with a political party.
In the past week, McMaster began to loosen his state restrictions on daily life in order to stem the spread of the new coronavirus. He reopened public boat ramps. He reopened some capacity-constrained businesses, including clothing stores, departments, furniture, jewelry and sporting goods, as well as florists and flea markets.
He lifted his state ban on access to the public beach, although some city and county officials decided to keep the beaches closed.
Cabanas said these efforts are not enough and said the governor has no right to decide which businesses are essential and which are not.
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Drive to Thrive organizers hope to put 50,000 cars on the streets of Columbia at noon on Friday. They are asking people to wave flags, show signs or write messages outside the vehicles, as well as honk for a minute at 12:30.
Organizers asked participants not to congest the streets or disobey local traffic laws. If they do, they won’t be part of the Drive to Thrive event, said Cabanas.
On Thursday morning, Cabanas said 2,500 people had pledged to participate.
Two other events appear to be planned at the same time in Columbia, according to separate Facebook posts. Cabanas said it is not affiliated with the Drive to Thrive event.
As of Wednesday, 4,761 people in South Carolina tested positive for COVID-19 and 140 of them died, according to the state Department of Health and Environmental Control.