HUMBOLDT 鈥� Signs overlaid with no-mask slogans and several dozen attendees were present at the Humboldt Civic Park on Sunday, as a rally was held decrying the provincial government for their COVID-19 response.
Some of these signs included 鈥渦nmask the children, oxygen is essential鈥�, promoting the idea that cloth masks prevent oxygen intake.
Other signs simply read slogans like 鈥渄evice of mass control鈥� or 鈥渟ave our children, no masks in schools.鈥� At the front of the crowd, protestors held up a large white banner reading 鈥渇reedom over fear鈥� in red ink.
Some attendees brought children, which ran around the space without physical spacing or any kind of mask.
One attendee, RB Ham, travelled out from Saskatoon to attend the rally. He said travelling from the city wasn鈥檛 uncommon with the crowd鈥檚 attendants.
鈥淲e came out from Saskatoon, a lot of us, because this is a provincial rally today,鈥� Ham said. 鈥淲e invited everybody from the whole province to be here. We were hoping for 100, and it鈥檚 not a bad turnout and we hope it鈥檚 more.鈥�
Ham called school policies requiring children to wear masks 鈥渁 crime against humanity.鈥�
鈥淚t鈥檚 psychologically damaging to be masking our kids because it鈥檚 not optional for the children,鈥� he said.
鈥淓ven if it鈥檚 more dangerous than the seasonal flu by a little bit, which is what the stats are showing, it鈥檚 more deadly for people over 70. The average age of people dying are in their 80s. We got to keep our economy going for the sake of everybody.鈥�
According to Johns Hopkins University of Medicine, as of Oct. 18, Canada has a five per cent case-fatality rate with 197,067 cases and 9,782 deaths due to the virus.The United States has a 2.7 per cent case-fatality rate with 8,106,384 cases and 219,286 deaths due to the virus.
鈥淕overnment isn鈥檛 always right and science isn鈥檛 always right, otherwise we would still be spraying DDT on our vegetables and giving thalidomide to pregnant ladies,鈥� Ham said. 鈥淵ou have to look at the whole picture and there is an alternative story going on.鈥�
A man some attendees pointed to as the organizer, Austin Rodgerson, refused to speak to the Humboldt Journal or give his name, stating 鈥渕edia is the problem.鈥�
Ham rejected the claim that Rodgerson was in charge.
鈥淗e鈥檚 not in charge, nobody鈥檚 in charge. We鈥檙e just a bunch of guys, right? Nobody鈥檚 in charge,鈥� Ham said.
Shortly after the rally, Ham, Rodgerson and others from the group went to Humboldt鈥檚 Terry鈥檚 No Frills without masks to show opposition to their store policy requiring masks to protect the other customers and staff.
A video from the incident shows an employee asking the group to leave and informing them that the RCMP had been called.
鈥淚鈥檓 not forcing you to shop here, so you can go somewhere else that doesn鈥檛 need you to wear a facemask,鈥� the employee said to one of the women.
鈥淭oo bad,鈥� the woman replied, before being asked to leave again by the manager and employee.
鈥淲e are leaving because we are choosing to leave,鈥� the woman added.
鈥淕ood,鈥� replied both the employee and the manager in unison.
After being asked to leave about three more times, the woman complied.
Two police officers responded. The officers stood at the front of the store to prevent the group鈥檚 reentry.
鈥淚鈥檓 from Saskatoon, but I鈥檓 willing to take a Humboldt business down,鈥� Rodgerson told the officers, threatening to sue No Frills.
In an interview with the Humboldt Journal, Dr. Erika Penz, adult respirologist from the University of Saskatchewan鈥檚 College of Medicine said there鈥檚 鈥渘o way鈥� a mask could actually reduce significant oxygen molecules from reaching a person鈥檚 lungs or prevent carbon dioxide from being released.
鈥淲hen we put on a mask, specifically perhaps it is a surgical mask, or perhaps it is a cloth mask, a mask basically acts as a light barrier around our nose and mouth, but allows for enough air in the atmosphere to get around that,鈥� Penz said.
鈥淲hen we鈥檙e breathing the air there鈥檚 nothing obstructing the oxygen molecules from number one, coming in from the side of the mask, and actually through the mask鈥� That material is not strong enough to stop oxygen from filtering through it.鈥�
While there is no evidence to show any physical harm caused by wearing a mask, Penz said it can make some people feel like they are being harmed.
鈥淪ome people might say to themselves and others, 鈥業 feel horrible when I wear a mask, I feel so panicked I feel like I鈥檓 going to die and that trauma causes me harm.鈥� I think that it鈥檚 well recognized that a very small minority of individuals do feel uncomfortable wearing a mask, and in fact it can trigger those types of emotions and panic in some individuals.鈥�
Penz said these feelings can result in the individual breathing faster and feeling anxious.
鈥淭here are strategies to actually help people overcome those feelings by practicing wearing a mask, normalizing that feeling, trying to actually actively slow down their breathing,鈥� she said. 鈥淪o I want to recognize people can perceive and experience discomfort, but the actual term 鈥榟arm from a mask鈥� has not been proven.鈥�
