chicagotribune--2020-05-14--Chicago-area CEOs to support COVID-19 relief efforts with ‘Sweet Home Chicago’ telethon Saturday

Last month , NBC Sports Chicago hosted the “ Be Chicago : Together We Can ” telethon to raise money @ @ @ @ @ Response Fund created by United Way of Metro Chicago and The Chicago Community Trust .
@ @ @ @ @ support to organizations fighting food insecurity , health services , emergency shelter and financial assistance @ @ @ @ @ as well as mortgage , rent and utility aid .

Business leaders from Chicago’s financial, development and entertainment industries are banding together to raise funds for the Chicago Community COVID-19 Response Fund, along with other local charities and coronavirus relief efforts.
On Saturday, the Chicago CEO COVID-19 Coalition will conduct "The Sweet Home Chicago” telethon, which will be broadcast on NBC Sports Chicago at 5 p.m. and streamed on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.
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John Koudounis, CEO of Naperville-based Calamos Investments and founder of the coalition, declined to say how much the group has raised before the telethon, but said the fund is “off to a great start.”
Comedian Deon Cole will host the telethon. The event will include an appearance by former Chicago Bears coach Mike Ditka and the Chicago "superfans” — actors Joe Mantegna, George Wendt and Robert Smigel — reprising their “Saturday Night Live” sketch comedy.
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Also scheduled to take part in the telethon are the 1985 Bears’ Steve McMichael, Otis Wilson and Kevin Butler; Horace Grant, Zach LaVine and Toni Kukoc of the Chicago Bulls; Patrick Kane of the Blackhawks; Paul Konerko of the White Sox; Fergie Jenkins, Ryne Sandberg and Joe Maddon of the Chicago Cubs; and Brian Urlacher of the Bears.
Several other celebrities will make appearances as well, including Buddy Guy, Bob Odenkirk, D.B. Sweeney, Jenny McCarthy, Donny Wahlberg, Vic Mensa and Billy Zane.
Along with Calamos, corporate sponsors of the telethon include Northern Trust, Sterling Bay, Wintrust Financial Corp., Cinespace Chicago Film Studios, GCM Grosvenor, HighTower Advisors, Madison Dearborn Partners, Mesirow Financial, Astor Investment Management, PNC Bank and CIBC.
Donations will support local charities like the Chicago Community COVID-19 Response Fund; Greater Chicago Food Depository; the Salvation Army Metropolitan Division; The Night Ministry; Catholic Charities, Archdiocese of Chicago; Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Chicago; Jewish United Fund; Metropolitan Family Services; the 100 Club of Chicago; and Howard Brown Health.
George Wendt, left, and Robert Smigel are interviewed Aug. 19, 2019, in Chicago while in costume to reprise an old "Saturday Night Live" sketch in which they play Bears fans. They are scheduled to participate in a COVID-19 telethon May 16, 2020. (Erin Hooley / Chicago Tribune)
Last month, NBC Sports Chicago hosted the “Be Chicago: Together We Can” telethon to raise money for the Chicago Community COVID-19 Response Fund created by United Way of Metro Chicago and The Chicago Community Trust. The fund aims to provide support to organizations fighting food insecurity, health services, emergency shelter and financial assistance through direct cash transfers, as well as mortgage, rent and utility aid.
The April telethon raised about $25,000, with an additional $20,000 from 7-Eleven, and led to additional donations, said Betsy Hughes, senior vice president and chief development officer for United Way of Metro Chicago.
The COVID-19 Response Fund has collected more than $32.3 million in nine weeks, and led to grants of more than $18.3 million to 285 local organizations, Hughes said. United Way will award additional grants as it receives applications from charities and more funding.
A telethon in New York on Monday, hosted by comedian Tina Fey, raised $115 million for New Yorkers affected by COVID-19.
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abjimenez@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @abdel1019


chicagotribune--2020-05-14--Preckwinkle unveils COVID-19 recovery plan for Cook County focusing on racial equity

“ We have a moral obligation to focus on equity as well , ” Preckwinkle said .
“ Our recovery @ @ @ @ @ everyone .
...
It must include our black and Latinx communities , because we ’ @ @ @ @ @ COVID-19 , as is true of every other crisis , our black and brown communities @ @ @ @ @ ”

Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle announced a bundle of economic initiatives on Wednesday aimed at communities hard-hit by the coronavirus pandemic.
In a speech hosted by the City Club of Chicago, Preckwinkle outlined the county’s COVID-19 “From Rapid Response to Equitable Recovery” plan. Starting this month, the county will transition to the “Equitable Recovery” stage, which entails a recovery fund for the suburbs, a blueprint to spread internet access and a bid to salvage public transportation ridership.
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Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle arrives Thursday, May 14, 2020, at the Cook County Building in Chicago or a virtual address to the City Club of Chicago regarding the county's response to the COVID-19 crisis. (Jose M. Osorio / Chicago Tribune)
Preckwinkle invoked previous crises the county and nation have weathered, warning that the virus’s hold begets the same sweeping government response as the New Deal during the Great Depression. Her new plan centers on relief for the south suburbs and South Side of Chicago.
“We have a moral obligation to focus on equity as well,” Preckwinkle said. “Our recovery from this pandemic must include everyone. ... It must include our black and Latinx communities, because we’ve already seen that with COVID-19, as is true of every other crisis, our black and brown communities are hit the hardest.”
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The recovery plan comes as Cook County faces a budget shortfall of at least $200 million. Preckwinkle said she is hopeful the next round of the federal government’s stimulus packages will include relief for lost revenue.
Illinois processed over 1 million unemployment claims from March to early May, according to U.S. Department of Labor data. In Chicago, black and Latino residents are dying at disproportionate rates from the virus.
The county’s Bureau of Economic Development has started a zero-interest loan fund for small businesses and gig workers in the suburbs. Small business owners stand to receive up to $20,000, while struggling independent contractors can get up to $10,000.
About 7,000 people have applied, and the county hopes to roll out the awards starting early June, Preckwinkle said.
As the virus sends families to access school online and work remotely, Preckwinkle said many pockets of Cook County are grappling with internet access. She has formed the Council on Digital Equity (CODE) to partner with internet service providers to create Wi-Fi zones. CODE also will work with businesses and agencies to purchase computers and high-speed internet for southern Cook County.
About 1 in 5 Cook County residents lack broadband internet access, according to the U.S. census. Preckwinkle said that rate is far higher for communities of color.
“While digital equity mattered before, it matters even more now,” Preckwinkle said. “Students are languishing at home, unable to complete their homework without laptops and missing Zoom classes because they don't have high bandwidth. Families struggled to apply for unemployment relief because they can't fill out the applications on their phone.”
The recovery plan will advance a Fair Transit Demonstration Project to boost ridership on public transportation lines on the South Side and in the south suburbs. At the moment, the county is talking with Metra about implementing a plan to improve service and lower costs in the fall. Preckwinkle said she hopes the CTA will participate too.
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“Many of these riders are workers who have been historically undervalued until now,” Preckwinkle said. “Our grocery store workers, pharmacy assistants, nurses and line cooks need affordable, accessible transit now more than ever.”
A coalition of community leaders and advocates, convened by Preckwinkle’s chief of staff, also will be reviewing each of these efforts before giving feedback to the county.
“As we’ve responded to COVID-19, the breakdown in communication, especially on digital platforms, has been highlighted, and engagement between communities and government has never been more urgent,” Preckwinkle said.
In her speech, Preckwinkle also jabbed the Trump administration’s response to the pandemic while highlighting the county’s mobilization.
“Despite federal inaction, we began preparation in earnest,” Preckwinkle said.
Correction: An earlier version of this story stated that the county recovery plan would create a new transit project. The project already existed.
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ayin@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-05-14--‘I was almost in tears’: White Pines Resort guests mourn the closure of their beloved northwest Illi

‘I was almost in tears’: White Pines Resort guests mourn the closure of their beloved northwest Illinois retreat, a casualty of the coronavirus pandemic

“ I ’ m smart enough to know that the numbers just won ’ t work for being able to @ @ @ @ @ based on volume , ” George said in the seven-minute video , in which she @ @ @ @ @ end of her 31-year run owning and operating the resort .
“ I ’ ve @ @ @ @ @ into this place .
I ’ m a mess trying to say that it won @ @ @ @ @ .
All the friends and the family and the staff — it ’ s breaking @ @ @ @

Like so many families in Chicago and beyond, Dick Cagney has made countless memories over the years at White Pines Resort, a rustic retreat nestled in a state park roughly 100 miles west of the city.
The Wilmette resident started going to White Pines some 35 years ago, when his oldest son was just 7. Visits with all four of his kids became an almost annual ritual. They’d stay in a log cabin and tell stories around the campfire. After a long day’s hike, they’d dine on chicken pot pie and peach cobbler in the lodge’s restaurant.
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“Sometimes we’d sit on the hood of the car and just look up at the stars,” Cagney recalled.
He was thinking about making another visit to the Mount Morris property later this year, this time with his grandchildren in tow. But on Wednesday, Cagney heard the news that came like a gut punch to so many of White Pines’ loyal guests: The resort’s longtime owner, Beth George, said she has no choice but to close and file for bankruptcy because of the prolonged shutdowns tied to the pandemic.
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“I was almost in tears,” Cagney said about watching George’s emotional announcement on a video posted to Facebook. “We loved everything about that place.”
The resort's restaurant is a popular spot for guests and locals alike. (White Pines Resort)
In the video, George said her business, which includes a 250-seat restaurant and dinner theater, is heavily dependent on weddings, banquets and large gatherings, and it can’t survive Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s five-phase road map for reopening the state. The plan bans events with more than 50 people until there’s a vaccine, treatment or widespread immunity to COVID-19.
The statewide death toll from COVID-19 stands at 3,928 and a total of 87,937 known cases as of Thursday, according to officials.
“I’m smart enough to know that the numbers just won’t work for being able to reopen. ... My business is based on volume,” George said in the seven-minute video, in which she broke down crying about the end of her 31-year run owning and operating the resort. “I’ve poured my heart and soul into this place. I’m a mess trying to say that it won’t be there anymore. All the friends and the family and the staff — it’s breaking my heart.”
Like other concessionaires who operate facilities within an Illinois state park, George had a long-term lease with the state that let her use the 23 log cabins and lodge built in the 1930s by the Civilian Conservation Corps — ironically, as a result of another economic disaster, the Great Depression.
White Pines Resort is tucked within the 385-acre White Pines Forest State Park, about a two-hour drive west of Chicago. It's home to one of the southernmost stands of virgin white pine trees in the Midwest. (White Pines Resort)
The resort that George developed over three decades is surrounded by the 385-acre White Pines Forest State Park, home to one of the Midwest’s southernmost stands of virgin white pine trees. The bucolic area brims with Native American history and sits just a few miles away from White Pines Ranch, a longtime popular spot for school groups to stay overnight and ride horses.
Brittany Snyder, 24, of Walnut, grew up about 40 minutes from White Pines Resort. Her family routinely would go to the restaurant for Mother’s Day and special occasions. Last year, Snyder got married at the property. She planned on spending her first anniversary in the resort’s honeymoon cabin in June.
“I was really upset,” Snyder said of the closure. “I have so many memories there. I would have loved to be able to make memories like that with my kids some day.”
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Pre-pandemic, George had 54 weddings on the books for 2020. Cabin reservations in March, the start of the season, were unusually strong.
Brittany Snyder, seen here with husband Austin Snyder, grew up going to White Pines Resort in Mount Morris. Last year, she got married at the property. She planned on spending her one-year anniversary at the resort next month, only to learn that it's closing down as a casualty of the pandemic. (Brittany Snyder)
“It was primed to be a great year, probably my best year,” George said Thursday on the phone from Costa Rica, where the 61-year-old has been staying since traveling there to visit her son and welcome her new grandson shortly before flights ground to a halt.
White Pines Resort, which closes in the winter, was open for nine days in March before Pritzker closed state parks in the middle of that month and limited restaurants to carry-out. George had just spent money filling the lodge’s gift shop with new inventory and restocking the food freezer and wine cellar to kick off the season.
“When the five phases of Pritzker’s reopening came out last week, it was just the nail in the coffin,” she said in the Facebook video, adding that she thinks the governor’s timeline would have kept her from returning to business until March or April of 2021 at the earliest.
“I’ve been closed since December. ... What business could possibly go 16 months without being able to open? And money is going out every month for expenses — bleeding out.”
Brittany Snyder and her father Tim Schmitt sit in front of the fireplace in a log cabin during one of her earliest visits to the resort. About two decades later, Snyder got married at White Pines. (Brittany Snyder)
The resort employs between 45 and 55 people, depending on the time of year. George applied for the federal Paycheck Protection Program money and was approved, but she said it didn’t do her much good because her business was shuttered. She said her only viable option is to declare bankruptcy, something she intends to do after she’s paid back as much as possible to the brides and other clients who gave her advance deposits.
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The resort will hold a sale in its gift shop on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, and the proceeds will be used to help with the refunds, George said.
The resort's offerings include a dinner theater. (White Pines Resort)
She’s hopeful that once the bankruptcy dust settles, the state will find another concessionaire to eventually reopen the resort, at least in some capacity.
That’s the hope of Glenview native Doug Foote too.
“It would be a crying shame if the state let that fall into disrepair,” said Foote, who lives in suburban Minneapolis.
Foote, 50, has been going to White Pines every year since he was just a few months old. He and more than 20 family members were headed there in October to celebrate the 50th anniversary of his visits.
The Foote family gathers around the campfire during one of their annual visits to White Pines Resort, which is closing because of the coronavirus pandemic shutdowns. Doug Foote, pictured here in a white T-shirt, proposed to his wife, Denise Foote, wearing a flannel, at the Mount Morris property in 1993. (White Pines Resort)
“I lost my dad when I was 16, and it’s the only place I still feel his presence,” said Foote, who proposed to his wife at White Pines. “We love this place. I’ve got kids that range from 14 up to 24, and they’ve made it every single year of their lives too. It’s a tradition.”
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He’s come to know George well over the years. He’s worried if the resort comes back, it won’t be the same without her.
George ended her Facebook video telling everyone she’s going to miss them terribly, but she’ll survive.
“I’m going to make it,” she said. “I’m just not going to make it at White Pines.”
Saying Goodbye After 31 Years. Saying goodbye after 31 years... We have some very important news to share with you all. It’s about COVID-19’s other deadly secret that no one is talking about…the death of the American Dream. Please take a minute to listen to this message from our owner Beth George. And if you don’t have time to watch the video, here are five key takeaways… . . . -Our historic gem that has been loved by so many far and wide for over 80 years is closing. -Beth was forced into bankruptcy due to the delayed reopening and restrictions from the Illinois Governor that has been placed on all restaurants and not being able to have events of over 50 people until there’s a vaccine. -Loss of freedom of speech for all business owners during this time -White Pines is hosting a going out of business Gift Shop sale May 18-20 from 10 AM – 6 PM. Please consider purchasing a momento and help us pay back our brides who were planning their wedding here. -Please continue to support Pine Creek Escape – book a cabin, book your wedding ceremony there and don’t forget about Starved Rock Lodge & Conference Center and so many other businesses that have been shut down. . . . We appreciate ALL OF THE SUPPORT over the past 30 plus years. It means SO much and we will miss you all! Posted by White Pines Resort on Wednesday, May 13, 2020
lrackl@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-05-14--Catholic bishops across Illinois announce church reopening plans as other religious groups mull way

Catholic bishops across Illinois announce church reopening plans as other religious groups mull way forward

Gov .
J.B. Pritzker has been under increasing pressure in recent days as smaller churches have sued the state , @ @ @ @ @ two-month-old stay-at-home order ’ s application to religious gatherings .
The governor added “ free @ @ @ @ @ an essential activity to his revised stay-at-home order late April 30 , after a rural @ @ @ @ @ plan , and Catholic leaders soon after said they were working on a plan to @ @ @ @ @ bishops reached an agreement with the state Wednesday , according to letters posted on their @ @ @ @

Javonte Anderson, Katherine Rosenberg-Douglas

The Archdiocese of Chicago and other Catholic dioceses throughout the state announced phased plans to begin reopening Catholic churches, starting in Chicago with small gatherings for baptisms, weddings, funerals and confession as early as May 23.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker has been under increasing pressure in recent days as smaller churches have sued the state, trying to lift the almost two-month-old stay-at-home order’s application to religious gatherings. The governor added “free exercise of religion” as an essential activity to his revised stay-at-home order late April 30, after a rural church filed suit against the plan, and Catholic leaders soon after said they were working on a plan to reopen churches. The Catholic bishops reached an agreement with the state Wednesday, according to letters posted on their dioceses’ websites.
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Pritzker spokeswoman Jordan Abudayyeh did not say Thursday whether his administration has been in touch with leaders of other faith organizations, but leaders of other Christian denominations said they also are working on reopening plans.
“The Catholic Church developed their own plan that fits well within the requirements of the stay-at-home order that we have in place,” Pritzker said Thursday during his daily briefing on COVID-19.
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“I’m actually very pleased. I think they did an excellent job with the plan that they put forward.”
Abudayyeh said Pritzker’s office recommends any essential organization, such as churches, work with public health experts on reopening plans.
Cardinal Blase Cupich said Thursday the archdiocese has been in “constant conversation” with government health officials and elected officials since the coronavirus outbreak began. Last week, after the archdiocese approached state officials about possibly reopening, Pritzker asked them first to present a proposal, Cupich said.
The archdiocese coordinated with the other Catholic bishops in the state, Cupich said.
"We convened the other dioceses and said we would like to do this in a united way," he said.
After receiving input from the other dioceses, Cupich said he and archdiocesan staff made a slide presentation to the governor’s office last week that outlined how Catholic churches could gradually open in a “staged and phased” way. Cupich said he also spoke with Mayor Lori Lightfoot and Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle.
Under the plan for the Archdiocese of Chicago, which covers Cook and Lake counties, smaller gatherings could start as soon as May 23, depending on preparations in each parish. But because “our movements will be restricted as that plan unfolds in different phases," Masses will continue to be offered in private and livestreamed or broadcast, not opened to the public, Cupich said in his letter.
Public adoration of the Eucharist and the reopening of churches for private prayer could begin as soon as May 30, according to Cupich. It’s unclear when regular Masses would begin again, because that will depend on lifting state and local gathering restrictions, according to the letter.
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The other dioceses will follow slightly different schedules. In the Diocese of Rockford, small Masses could begin May 25, while the dioceses of Joliet’s and Peoria’s anticipated openings follow the same dates as those in the Archdiocese of Chicago, according to letters from those dioceses’ bishops.
Churches in the Diocese of Springfield have been open for private prayer and confession and gatherings of fewer than 10 people, at least since Pritzker’s revised stay-at-home order. And as of last week, the faithful have begun receiving Holy Communion, according to a letter from Bishop Thomas Paprocki.
“As the situation may be unfolding rapidly, parishes are reminded that they must await approval from the diocese before resuming public Masses,” he wrote.
Plans for the Diocese of Belleville were the last to post Thursday morning. A representative for the diocese said a plan was crafted and distributed Wednesday night, it just wasn’t immediately posted to the diocese website.
Bishop Edward Braxton in his letter addressed the varying feelings among Christian faithful about reopening. He said some believe that because there haven’t been as many infections in southern Illinois as in the Chicago area, church activities should not have ceased, while others believe people “have greater trust in God and confidently assemble for Mass trusting that Jesus himself will protect us from harm.”
“As your Bishop, it has been my responsibility to ask you to do everything possible to follow faithfully the best available disease-mitigation practices to contain the pandemic’s rampage through our communities,” Braxton wrote.
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Pritzker’s office, while praising joint efforts thus far, said it expects cooperation to continue.
“The Catholic Church has been responsible and proactive and we appreciate their efforts to keep their parishioners safe,” Abudayyeh wrote in an email.
Other religious organizations also are planning for their congregations’ eventually gathering again, whenever that might happen. State and local organizations for denominations including Southern Baptists and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America have spelled out how to come together again as restrictions are lifted.
The Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Chicago plans to implement a ”comprehensive set of conditions-based protocols” in the coming weeks to progressively reopen churches,” according to a statement posted to their website earlier this week.
Chris Varones, a Metropolis spokesman, said the church is committed to increasing parishioner participation in religious services as soon as possible, but their chief priority is ensuring they can do so safely.
“Our focus is not on a particular date when this would be permitted, but on the conditions that would allow such participation without unnecessarily risking people’s health,” he said.
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Bishop Jeff Lee said the Episcopal Diocese of Chicago is putting the final touches on a phased reentry into church buildings.
Under the plan, Episcopal church buildings will not begin to reopen until June 1, Lee said. The first phase will be quite modest, only opening so churches can broadcast and stream their services from inside the sanctuary. Churchgoers will not be allowed.
After the initial phase, the churches will allow small groups of people to enter, but that is dependent on public health indicators, Lee said.
“We just think it’s prudent and consistent with Christian values to act and refrain from acting in ways that could put people in danger,” Lee said. “We’re duty-bound to care for the most vulnerable folks among us.”
The Associated Press contributed.


chicagotribune--2020-05-14--Hundreds gather in the rain outside Michigan Capitol to rally against stay-at-home orders: ‘You will

Hundreds gather in the rain outside Michigan Capitol to rally against stay-at-home orders: ‘You will kill the state. You just will.’

The governor , whose handling of the crisis has broad public support , according to polls , has gradually reopened @ @ @ @ @ , construction and real estate .
She pointed to modeling showing a median estimate that @ @ @ @ @ least 3,480 additional deaths .
More than 4,700 people have died in Michigan from complications @ @ @ @ @ is the fourth-most of any state and the sixth-most on a per-capita basis .

LANSING, Mich. — Hundreds of people angry or frustrated over Michigan's coronavirus stay-at-home order protested again outside the state Capitol on Thursday, braving heavy rain to call for a loosening of restrictions and for business owners to reopen in defiance of Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.
The demonstration was smaller than previous rallies. It was led by Michigan United for Liberty, a conservative activist group that has sued Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and organized or participated in several protests since early April.
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People in the crowd of roughly 200 held signs declaring “Every worker is essential," “Make Michigan work again” and “Stop the tyranny.”
“We can get some businesses back open,” said David Saxton, a 40-year-old IT specialist from Alma, in central Michigan. He said he lost his job, is receiving unemployment benefits and noted that a COVID-19 vaccine may not be ready for a year and a half. “Staying shut down that long is not practical. You will kill the state. You just will."
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Protesters hold signs during a rally against Michigan’s coronavirus stay-at-home order at the State Capitol in Lansing, Mich., Thursday, May 14, 2020. (Paul Sancya/AP)
Protesters hold signs during a rally against Michigan’s coronavirus stay-at-home order at the State Capitol in Lansing, Mich., Thursday, May 14, 2020. (Paul Sancya/AP)
Though state police and Michigan's attorney general had warned of enforcing prohibitions on brandishing guns or ignoring potential directives to stay 6 feet apart, there were no arrests. Some protesters still stood closer together.
Some carried guns even though lawmakers from both parties criticized certain demonstrators for intimidating and threatening tactics two weeks ago. At that protest, they openly carried semi-automatic rifles into the Capitol, including the Senate gallery, sparking calls by Democrats to ban guns from the building.
Some protest organizers have acknowledged carrying firearms in close proximity to lawmakers in the Capitol was a mistake.
A protester carries his rifle during a rally against Michigan’s coronavirus stay-at-home order at the State Capitol in Lansing, Mich., Thursday, May 14, 2020. (Paul Sancya/AP)
A protester wears a gas mask and carries an American flag during a rally in response to Michigan’s coronavirus stay-at-home order at the State Capitol in Lansing, Mich., on May 14, 2020. (Paul Sancya/AP)
Organizers on Thursday tried to keep the focus on reopening the state. A scuffle broke out when people speaking on the Capitol steps prevented a man from displaying an American flag that had an unclothed female doll with a noose around the neck. Several masked counter-protesters stood silently in support of the governor’s actions to keep the virus from spreading.
The Republican-led Legislature was not in session Thursday — the Senate had planned to be but changed course — and the Capitol was closed to the public. A court will hear arguments Friday in GOP lawmakers' lawsuit challenging the governor's ability to extend an emergency declaration, the underpinning of her restrictions, without their blessing.
The governor's stay-at-home order is effective at least until May 28.
[ Coronavirus restrictions fuel anti-government ‘boogaloo’ movement with roots in online meme culture steeped in irony and dark humor ]
“I don’t particularly want to see people congregating, period. We know that contributes to spread,” Whitmer said Wednesday. “But if people are going to come down and demonstrate, do it in a responsible way. That’s what we ask.”
The governor, whose handling of the crisis has broad public support, according to polls, has gradually reopened some sectors such as manufacturing, construction and real estate. She pointed to modeling showing a median estimate that her order had prevented at least 3,480 additional deaths. More than 4,700 people have died in Michigan from complications related to COVID-19, which is the fourth-most of any state and the sixth-most on a per-capita basis.
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Darcey Atkins, a 52-year-old from Grant, in central Michigan, held two small American flags and wore a hat in support of President Donald Trump. She questioned why she can go to Walmart but not her church. She attended two previous protests and described the latest one as “a little disappointing because Americans need to realize their freedoms are being taken away.”
The governor should trust people to decide whether to stay home if they have symptoms, Atkins said.
“She’s deciding who can do what, when they can do it and how they can do it. I agree that there is some people who are very much in danger of dying. But I also think that she’s taking away rights that are not hers to take away," she said.