New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said on Thursday that all large gatherings in the city are banned due to the coronavirus, except for Black Lives Matter protests.
During an interview on CNN's "Situation Room," the Democratic mayor defended his decision to cancel all large gatherings in the city through the end of September.
De Blasio said the restrictions on such events "means like street fairs. It means big, outdoor concerts. And it means things like parades. Things that, here in the city, can mean, not just thousands, tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands of people. It’s just not time for that now."
When host Wolf Blitzer followed up by asking him about protests, however, de Blasio balked at the idea of banning them, saying residents "have to respect" them as a "moment of change."
"Look, Wolf, this is always an area of real sensitivity," de Blasio replied. "If you're just talking about health, we would always say, hey, folks, stay at home if you can. But we understand, at this moment in history, people are talking about the need for historic changes. I mean, today, in New York City, recognizing the power and the meaning of the message black lives matter, which we did in front of Trump Tower today. This is a historic moment of change. We have to respect that, but also say to people, the kinds of gatherings we're used to, the parades, the fairs, we just can't have that while we're focusing on health right now."
Refusing to call out the mayor on his blatant hypocrisy, Blitzer responded by asking about the U.S. Open.