NEW YORK (WCBS 880) -- Hundreds of protesters took to the streets of Brooklyn on Tuesday night to protest coronavirus-related shutdowns imposed by the state, with masks being burned in the street at one point.
A large crowd of Orthodox men and boys protested in Borough Park after Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced the restrictions earlier Tuesday. The protests lasted until early in the morning, with some people refusing police orders to disperse.
Under the order, schools and nonessential businesses will be closed and houses of worship will be limited to 25% capacity or a maximum of 10 people in ZIP codes with high COVID infection rates. Restaurants will also have takeout only. The new rules were set to begin Thursday and Friday and last at least two weeks.
“We are not going to be deprived of the right that we have in America, like everybody else in America, the right to observe our religion,” Councilman Kalman Yeger told the crowd at the protest.
Tensions went on for hours in Borough Park. The FDNY had to be called after a crowd set masks and debris on fire at 13th Avenue and 46th Street.
There was also some pushing and shoving with police. No arrests were reported, but there was at least one injury amid the shoving.
Yeger said the protesters, most of whom weren't wearing masks, do not reflect the feelings of an entire community.
Yeger, along with State Sen. Simcha Felder, Assemblyman Simcha Eichenstein and Councilman Chaim Deutsch, released a statement in reaction to Cuomo’s order: “We are appalled by Governor Cuomo's words and actions today. He has chosen to pursue a scientifically and constitutionally questionable shutdown of our communities. His administration's utter lack of coordination and communication with local officials has been an ongoing issue since the start of the pandemic, and particularly recently as we face this uptick. Though we are the representatives of hotspot neighborhoods, we have been dis-included from conversations with the governor and his leadership team as they made devastating decisions affecting the people we serve.”
The statement went on to say: “We will continue to encourage total compliance with mask-wearing and social distance guidelines in our communities. In recent weeks, we have seen a vast increase in compliance throughout our communities. We have personally organized massive mask distributions in areas that have seen an uptick in positive cases - distributing hundreds of thousands of masks to our constituents. Sadly, instead of working alongside our community to build on our work, the governor has instead chosen to respond with threats and aggressive enforcement -- a tactic which has historically failed in all communities throughout New York.”
Yeger blames noncompliance on mixed messages coming from City Hall and the governor, WCBS 880's Marla Diamond reported.
Of beatings witnessed at mask-burning protests, Mayor Bill de Blasio declared that going forward there will be no tolerance for violence or lighting fires in the street, adding that the NYPD has clear instructions and there will be consequences.
“I understand that there are people who disagree with this plan and it is a democracy—we appreciate there is always going to be disagreements,” de Blasio said. “But it’s crucial that those who disagree still respect that the state and city have made a decision for the health and safety of all.”
“There will be no tolerance for assaults, for damage to property, for setting fires,” the mayor added. “Anything like that is unacceptable.”
Despite the protests, Cuomo is not backing down from his unpopular decision.
There's fury in parts of the Orthodox Jewish community because of the restrictions, but Cuomo said this is not about targeting any specific group, it's about the numbers.
"The infection rate in the hot spots is five times what it is statewide," Cuomo said, adding that the hospitalization rate in these zones is three times the statewide average. "To the extent there are communities that are upset, that's because they hadn't been following the original rules."
Cuomo wants the city to do a better job of cracking down on violators.
"This is the consequence of non enforcement is increased infections," Cuomo said.