San Francisco Mayor London Breed Caught Breaking City’s Indoor Mask Rule

San Francisco Mayor London Breed speaks during a news conference outside of Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital in San Francisco, Calif., on March 17, 2021. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

San Fransisco Mayor London Breed was seen dancing and singing maskless at a nightclub, apparently violating the city’s public health restrictions.

The San Francisco Chronicle reported the mayor was at the Black Cat jazz club in the Tenderloin, where she enjoyed a late night performance, along with other equally maskless guests.

“The fact that we have not been able to enjoy live music in this way since the beginning of this pandemic made it even that much more special and extraordinary,” she told The Chronicle after the performance.

One of the photos published by The Chronicle shows a smiling Breed celebrating with with Alicia Garza, co-founder of Black Lives Matter, who was also not wearing a mask.

According to San Francisco’s public health department, every resident, including people who are fully vaccinated, “must wear a well-fitted mask in indoor public settings at all times,” except when they are actively eating or drinking. It also states that “indoor settings, whether public or private, are higher risk for COVID-19 transmission, especially when you are with people you do not live with.”

In a video published by The Chronicle, Breed can be seen standing and dancing along behind a table full of drinks, but she was not actively drinking or eating, or holding food or a drink.

A statement from the mayor’s office acknowledged that it can be hard to follow public health orders.

“The mayor was excited to be out and had an incredible night at the Black Cat, and wants to support small businesses,” the statement reads. “She was with friends at her table, not wearing a mask while eating and drinking and enjoying herself. She knows health orders are hard and asks everyone to do their best to follow them.”

Breed is not the first California Democrat who has been caught violating COVID-19 restrictions. At the height of the pandemic in November of last year, California Gov. Gavin Newsom was broadly criticized for attending a party at the famed French Laundry restaurant in Napa without wearing a mask and with visitors from multiple households, after he discouraged state residents from having holiday gatherings.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi faced similar criticism in September 2020 during the height of the pandemic, after a security camera footage was posted online, which showed her visiting a San Francisco hair salon, which at that time was closed under the city’s lockdown order. The congresswoman, who advocated for a nationwide mask mandate, didn’t wear a mask during the salon visit.