FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Shoppers at a Florida Target store this week were yelled at by a group of maskless people, urging them to take off their face masks.
Some video of the demonstration was posted Tuesday on Reddit, showing the group pointing out to other customers. According to HuffPost, it happened Tuesday at a Target in Fort Lauderdale.
"Yeah, take it off!" one woman yelled as another man went, "Take off your mask!" As Twisted Sisters' "We're Not Gonna Take It" blared, someone chimed in, "No, we ain't gonna take it!"
Here's the video and, as a warning, there is some offensive language involved.
Florida ranks No. 3 in the nation in terms of the total number of positive COVID-19 cases since the pandemic began, behind California and Texas, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It ranks No. 4 in terms of the total COVID-related deaths.
Despite the complaints of the loud demonstrators, the Mayo Clinic and scientists contend cloth face coverings most likely can reduce the spread of COVID-19 and "countries that required face masks, testing, isolation and social distancing early in the pandemic have successfully slowed the spread of the virus."
CDC Director Dr. Robert Redfield went as far as to say Wednesday that masks might even provide better protection than a vaccine.
"We have clear scientific evidence they work, and they are our best defense," Redfield said. "I might even go so far as to say that this face mask is more guaranteed to protect me against COVID than when I take a COVID vaccine."
Redfield explained that a potential coronavirus vaccine may only have an immune response 70 percent of the time that protects a person against COVID-19.
"If I don’t get an immune response, the vaccine’s not going to protect me. This face mask will,” Redfield said while holding up his surgical face mask.
Target stores nationwide require customers to wear a mask when inside their stores.
"We’re aware of the group of guests who came into the store last night and we asked them to leave after they removed their masks and became disruptive and rude to other shoppers," the company said in a statement to the New York Post.
Since the demonstration, Broward County fined both Target for not enforcing the mask law and mailed protesters citations as well, according to the Sun-Sentinel.
The outlet reports three people were able to be identified in the video and were hit with a $100 citation.
"Any additional participants from the video that are able to be identified will also receive $100 citations in the mail,” she said to the Sun-Sentinel.
Twisted Sister frontman Dee Snider wasn't too pleased, either, tweeting: "No...these selfish a**holes do not have my permission or blessing to use my song for their moronic cause. #cutthes***"
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