As COVID-19 cases are on the rise in some New York City neighborhoods, Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) says he will close religious institutions if they violate restrictions designed the slow the spread of the virus.
During a press conference on Tuesday, Cuomo said, “We know religious institutions have been a problem. We know mass gatherings are the super-spreader events. We know there have been mass gatherings going on, in concert with religious institutions, in these communities for weeks.”
He went on to clarify that he was not referring to “little violations,” such as exceeding occupancy limits by a few people. Instead, he said there had been events that have exceeded the restrictions by hundreds of people.
Cuomo also displayed images of gatherings that were apparently in violation of restrictions, then asked, “What did you think was going to happen?”
“Religious institutions are mass gatherings and raise the greatest potential. … These have been going on for weeks, you don’t see masks, and you see clear violation of social distancing,” he added:
He continued:
“If we’re going to keep religious institutions open, it can only be with two conditions. One, the community must agree — whether it’s the Jewish community, whether we’re talking about Black churches, whether we’re talking about Roman Catholic churches — the religious community has to agree to the rules. And they have to agree that they are going to follow the rules.”
“If you do not agree to enforce the rules, then we’ll close the institutions down. I am prepared to do that,” he warned.
The other condition Cuomo called for is “real enforcement” of the COVID-19 restrictions.
Watch the video below:
#BREAKING: Cuomo threatens to close religious institutions that do not follow guidelines: "If you do not agree to enforce the rules, then we'll close the institutions down. I am prepared to do that." pic.twitter.com/nEb2kxRl96
— The Hill (@thehill) October 5, 2020
For example, Cuomo said he would like to see religious institutions have people posted at the doors to ensure that the occupancy limits are observed, and that people who would exceed the limits are turned away.
However, he said that if he does not get the religious community to agree to his terms, “We will close down the religious institutions.”
New York was once the epicenter of the outbreak and saw an average of around 900 coronavirus deaths at the height of the outbreak in April. In the months that followed, the daily death count has ticked down to the single digits.
However, New York City has seen new spikes in cases in neighborhoods which prompted school and business closures in certain areas.