Crowd rallies outside PHD board meeting to protest possible mandate

HAYDEN — Jake Kopp stood outside Friday’s meeting of the Panhandle Health District board with a sign that read, “I will not comply.”

And if that didn’t make it clear enough for how he felt about a possible mandate to wear masks to help reduce the spread of the coronavirus, Kopp said, “We the people of North Idaho are through and we’re not going to stand for it anymore.”

About 200 people rallied at PHD’s office building on Atlas Road to protest after learning the PHD board might be voting on whether to require people within its jurisdiction to wear masks in public places where social distancing isn’t possible.

“These folks are unelected and unaccountable,” Kopp said. “They don’t have the power that they claim to have.”

Adults and children held signs, flags and prayed as some waited outside, and some gathered inside to watch the board’s meeting on a big screen TV in the lobby.

They yelled and jeered when people spoke in favor of masks, and cheered when others testified that masks were unnecessary.

None wore masks.

Two Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office deputies stood at the main doorway.

The board’s decision to table the issue was met with skepticism.

“I think it was wrong. I think it was cowardly,” said Colleen McGowan of Coeur d’Alene.

“It’s a delay tactic because they didn’t expect this,” said one woman who declined to give her name.

Another woman said, “This was basically postponing it to a different time so perhaps they will not have the same level of public comment.”

Dawn Pratt said even if a mask mandate was passed, she wouldn’t adhere to it and neither would her children.

“I will not mask my kids, period,” she said. “My kids will not be masked. I will fight.”

“We need to open schools and we need to open them normal, and we need to open Idaho normal,” she said, clearly upset.

She said it’s been stressful economically, educationally and socially.

“I’m done,” she said.

The rally came together quickly as news of the board meeting spread.

Christian Watts of the Athol area, holding a sign that said, “My body my choice,” said PHD doesn’t have the right to tell people what to do with their bodies.

But he believed the issue went beyond that.

“They keep using it as a issue of health and it’s obviously not,” he said. “I mean, it’s so pathetically obviously not, that it comes down to liberty.”

Rebecca Trostrud of Sandpoint said she opposed masks.

“I just think it’s an essential right to breathe fresh air,” she said.

Kathleen Mather said she supports those who want to wear a mask, “but we don’t think the government should mandate. It needs to be a choice.”

As the 3 p.m. board meeting stretched on into the afternoon, a man urged the people to go inside and testify to the board.

“All of us are going to be wearing a mask or sitting in jail and I’m not wearing a mask, so either you stay out here and be fair with what they’re doing, or you get in there and you make your voice heard,” he shouted.

Many began walking inside.

“All right, let’s go,” said one.

“Let’s do it,” added another.

Brian Taunt of Hayden was emphatic when asked if he would wear a mask if it were mandated.

“I’m not going to wear a mask, period,” he said.

He said when the mask and quarantine issue began, it was billed by government officials as for a short time until the virus was under control. That was earlier in the year.

March, April, May and June came and went, he said, and the government call for masks has only grown stronger.

“Now it’s July,” he said. “There’s no reason to be doing this except trying to control the people and eroding our rights that were given to us by the Founding Fathers.”

Nina Beesley of Rathdrum, watching the board meeting inside, said basic cloth masks, which many people wear, are actually dangerous to health when worn for long periods.

“We’re not going to wear them, we’re not going to comply with something that’s going to harm our health,” she said.

Debbie Denney of Coeur d’Alene wore a leopard mask with a nose and whiskers that did not cover her mouth

“I am against masks because I think it’s very unhealthy for people and I don’t want to see my grandkids growing up in a world where they have to wear a mask over their nose,” she said.

She said she has worn a mask “off and on” in recent months.

“It gets hot. I can’t breathe,” she said.

Lisa Keseloff of Sandpoint said there has been one death due to the coronavirus in the PHD, and about 10 hospitalizations.

She questioned why masks might now be mandated instead of months ago, if they’re effective against the coronavirus.

“I don’t think now is the time for masks,” she said. “If they’re worried about it, we should have had masks early on.”

Keseloff said she believed that overall, “we’re on the positive side of this. So, to be mandating masks now, doesn’t make sense. In fact, it feels like it’s not about the virus. And I’m not a conspiracy theorist, but seeing things like this, makes me wonder.”