‘Million Maskless March,’ Mask Burning Event Being Planned in Florida

People wear masks in a file photo. (Morry Gash/AP Photo)

Florida residents who oppose mask mandates due to the COVID-19 pandemic are trying to organize a large protest and “mask burning” event next month.

“You are invited to the Million Maskless March and Mask Burning, Saturday April 10, 2021 at 3pm at the Corner of A1A and Las Olas in Ft Lauderdale!” said Chris Nelson, the organizer of the protest, in a post online. Nelson added that April 10 “marks one year of mask tyranny in Broward County and we will mark that date with a celebration of freedom!”

The event, dubbed the “Million Maskless March and Mask Burning,” will be held on that date in Fort Lauderdale, he said.

Authorities have given him permission, Nelson also said. The City of Fort Lauderdale has been contacted for comment.

“The mask burning is in full cooperation with local law enforcement and will be done in a safe and controlled manner. Following the mask burning we will March north on A1A, make a sharp left at Seabreeze and march back to where we began. The event will be over by 5pm,” he wrote, adding that  “signs are VERY important,” saying that people should have signs with slogans like: “MASKS ARE SLAVERY,” “NO MORE MASKS,” “MASKS OFF CHILDREN,” and “NO VACCINE PASSPORTS.”

“April is a very busy time for Ft Lauderdale Beach and this is exactly why this location was chosen,” Nelson added. “Our goal is for people to see us and be inspired to join in!”

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Republican, has been among the most vocal critics of lockdown measures and so-called vaccine passports. DeSantis has rolled back mask mandates as well as other restrictions in his state, which he says has not triggered a spike in CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus cases or a health catastrophe.

“The lockdowns failed to stop the virus but did a great deal of societal damage along the way—damage that a more targeted approach, seeking to reduce total harms, would have been able to avoid (and did, in places like Sweden and Florida),” DeSantis wrote in an op-ed for the Wall Street Journal on March 18.

And over the past weekend, DeSantis criticized plans for a vaccine passport system that is reportedly being drafted by the Biden administration. White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters Monday that the administration wants the private sector to take the lead on such proposals.

As a result, the governor announced he would take executive action against such measures.

“You want the fox to guard the hen house? I mean, give me a break. I think this is something that has huge privacy implications,” he said.

On Monday, Biden said that governors should re-implement their mask policies and pause re-opening efforts, coming after Texas, Mississippi, and other states rescinded their face covering mandates and moved to allow businesses to open again.

“I’m reiterating my call for every governor, mayor, and local leader to maintain and reinstate the mask mandate. Please, this is not politics. Reinstate the mandate if you let it down,” he said at a White House event.