London Breed, the mayor of San Francisco, is facing criticism after appearing to violate the city’s rules for masking in indoor settings.
Breed attended a show at San Francisco’s Black Cat jazz club last week. In a video taken by a San Francisco Chronicle reporter who was also in attendance, Breed can be seen dancing and singing without a mask on to a performance by two of the members of the group Tony! Toni! Toné!
Days after the show, Breed defended her actions to reporters, expressing disbelief that it even became a story.
“From my perspective, I was there, I was eating and I was drinking, and I was sitting with my friends and everyone who came in there was vaccinated,” Breed said, as reported by SFGate.
She continued, “So the fact that we have turned this into a story about being maskless, no: I’m not going to sip and put my mask on, sip and put my mask on, sip and put mask on, eat and put my mask on. While I’m eating and I’m drinking I’m going to keep my mask off. And yes, while we’re drinking, like everyone else there, we were all having a good time and again, all vaccinated.”
The city’s health department’s order says individuals can take off their masks “while actively eating or drinking.” It goes on to say that people should “be seated at a table or positioned at a stationary counter or place while eating or drinking.” These requirements apply to movie theaters and live-entertainment venues, in addition to indoor dining, and are supposed to be followed by all San Franciscans regardless of vaccination status.
It’s unclear whether the order will be updated in light of the changing tide of COVID-19 cases in California. CBS News reported that the state currently has the nation’s lowest rate of coronavirus cases, according to data collected by Johns Hopkins University. Also, currently more than 70 percent of Californians have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine.
