North Carolina Senate Voted Along Party Lines to Ban Anyone From Wearing Masks in Public

In response to these protests, the North Carolina Senate recently voted in favor of making masks illegal in public, even for health reasons. Republican Senators of the state believe this is the best way to protect their constituents, while Democratic Senators argue that this bill could literally be fatal.

In April, one pro-Palestine protest escalated, and the police detained 36 people who were cited with trespassing. The situation became so volatile that UNC Chapel Hill canceled all classes that day.

The act essentially bans wearing any kind of face mask in public that would otherwise hide a criminal’s identity, which they hoped would help minimize criminal activity during otherwise peaceful protests.

Before masks are actually illegal in North Carolina, the House, and the state’s Democratic Governor, Roy Cooper, still have to approve the bill. Meanwhile, residents of North Carolina, and really the rest of the world, are debating the benefits and disadvantages of such a decision.

But then, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the law was adjusted to allow musks in public for the health and safety of NC residents. Now, many are arguing that the bill should simply return to “normal” as there is no life-threatening pandemic being passed through the air.

A Democratic lawmaker in the North Carolina Senate, Sydney Batch, explained that, as a cancer survivor, she and her family have worn masks to protect her while she underwent treatment. And by refusing that option, the Senate could literally be killing people.

Many supporters of the bill argue that the police will not be charging residents wearing a mask while shopping for groceries or in a public place. The only time law enforcement will prosecute someone for wearing a mask in public is if they suspect they are doing so to hide their identity for criminal reasons.

As Senator Natasha Marcis, D-Mecklengburg, explained, “The bill sponsor says that probably no one would be charged just for wearing a mask for their health reasons if they’re not up to no good. But how does he know that?”

And some said that this new bill which literally makes masks illegal is a political move more than a fight for residents’ safety. They worry that if the bill passes and another pandemic arises, there will be no way to enforce an emergency mask mandate.

Newton told The Carolina Journal, “There seems to be a fundamental misunderstanding of what this bill does and how the law operates. And it’s no wonder that so many folks are scared. This bill addresses wearing a mask for the purpose of hiding your identity; those are the criminal statutes that are referenced… But if we communicate to the public a false notion, of course they’re going to be scared. Of course they’re going to be fearful. That certainly is not my intent.”

One would modernize sex crime laws to include technology like AI, another would reverse the juvenile justice reform of 2019 and charge 16 and 17 year old felony offenders as adults, and the third would allow more billboards to replace trees along the side of NC’s roads.

With a Republican Senate and a Democratic governor, it’s extremely challenging to say which bills will be passed and which won’t. Though the hope is that, no matter what Gov. Cooper decides, those who need to wear masks for their health will still be able to do so.