An anti-masking rally drew a large amount of supporters to the shores of Lakefront Park in Mandeville Saturday.
According to the Times-Picayune/New Orleans Advocate, the crowd was populated by some people carrying weapons as well as American flags.
The rally was in response to the St. Tammany School Board for following the orders of Governor John Bel Edwards and implementing a mask mandate for students.
Recent board meetings have seen serious blowback from parents calling the mandate an overreach of government.
At the rally was former teacher Jonathan Koeppel, dismissed by the school board for refusing to wear a mask. He told the paper: “People are literally stealing our freedoms and they’re doing it in the name of public safety.”
Visiting the rally from the north-state was Representative Danny McCormick, who drove five hours to attend. “We’re facing discrimination like we did back in segregation. We have two groups, the vaccinated and unvaccinated and the mask and not mask. We’re pitting those two groups together and liberty is my solution,” He commented. “Liberty is the opposite of discrimination.”
Beth Glover attended the event, she explained her reasons for resisting vaccination and masks: “Them forcing a vaccine and masks and all these mandates is taking away from our freedoms. I don’t wear the mask. I trust in the Lord for my health, and so far I’ve been healthy and done well.”