Name: Protesters in Pittsburgh demand Gov. Wolf to reopen businesses amid coronavirus pandemic
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Protesters in Pittsburgh demand Gov. Wolf to reopen businesses amid coronavirus pandemic

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CoronavirusShane Dunlap | Tribune-ReviewDemonstrators protesting the closure of business cross Grant Street on Monday in Pittsburgh.Shane Dunlap | Tribune-ReviewA demonstrator who only wanted to identify by her first name, Carol, stands atop her car with a sign Monday, April 20, 2020 as demonstrators rallied against the closure of business in Pennsylvania on Grant Street in Pittsburgh.Shane Dunlap | Tribune-ReviewProtesters carrying firearms, some with a local organization called Iron City Citizen Response Unit, stood in front of the City-County Building on Monday in Pittsburgh in a demonstration against the closures of business across the state.Shane Dunlap | Tribune-ReviewMotorists pass by on Grant Street in support of a rally Monday against the closure of business in Pennsylvania.Shane Dunlap | Tribune-ReviewProtesters gather Monday on Grant Street in Downtown Pittsburgh.Kristina Serafini | Tribune-ReviewMatt Shipley of McCandless attends a rally calling on Gov. Tom Wolf to reopen Pennsylvania businesses in front of the City-County Building in Downtown Pittsburgh on Monday.Jamie Martines | Tribune-ReviewPeople gather Monday in Downtown Pittsburgh to protest Gov. Tom Wolf’s widespread business closures because of the coronavirus pandemic.Shane Dunlap | Tribune-ReviewA demonstrator with the organization Iron City Civilian Response Unit stands in front of the City-County Building on Monday on Grant Street in Pittsburgh during a protest against the closure of business in Pennsylvania.Shane Dunlap | Tribune-ReviewMatt Shipley, of McCandless, protests in front of the City-County Building in Downtown Pittsburgh on Monday as demonstrators gathered to protest the closure of business across the state.Kristina Serafini | Tribune-ReviewA flag hangs out the window of a passing car as protesters call on Gov. Tom Wolf to reopen Pennsylvania businesses during a rally in front of the City-County Building in Downtown Pittsburgh on Monday.Kristina Serafini | Tribune-ReviewA woman hanging out of a vehicle’s sunroof hold a sign calling on Gov. Tom Wolf to reopen Pennsylvania businesses during a rally in front of the City-County Building in Downtown Pittsburgh on Monday.Kristina Serafini | Tribune-ReviewPittsburgh Police officers watch over a protest to call on Gov. Tom Wolf to reopen Pennsylvania businesses in front of the City-County Building in Downtown Pittsburgh on Monday.Kristina Serafini | Tribune-ReviewMatt Shipley of McCandless holds a sign calling on Gov. Tom Wolf to reopen Pennsylvania businesses during a rally in front of the City-County Building in Downtown Pittsburgh on Monday, April 20, 2020.Kristina Serafini | Tribune-ReviewA man with a rolled up flags waits in a parking lot along Grant Street for the start of a rally in front of the City-County Building in Downtown Pittsburgh to call on Gov. Tom Wolf to reopen Pennsylvania Businesses on Monday.Kristina Serafini | Tribune-ReviewProtesters call on Gov. Tom Wolf to reopen Pennsylvania businesses during a rally in front of the City-County Building in Downtown Pittsburgh on Monday.Kristina Serafini | Tribune-ReviewProtesters call on Gov. Tom Wolf to reopen Pennsylvania businesses during a rally in front of the City-County Building in Downtown Pittsburgh on Monday.Kristina Serafini | Tribune-ReviewProtesters call on Gov. Tom Wolf to reopen Pennsylvania businesses during a rally in front of the City-County Building in Downtown Pittsburgh on Monday.Shane Dunlap | Tribune-ReviewMotorists pass by on Grant Street in support of a rally Monday against the closure of business in Pennsylvania.Kristina Serafini | Tribune-ReviewProtesters call on Gov. Tom Wolf to reopen Pennsylvania businesses during a rally in front of the City-County Building in Downtown Pittsburgh on Monday.Kristina Serafini | Tribune-ReviewA person inside a vehicle wearing an American flag gestures to protesters along Grant Street as they call on Gov. Tom Wolf to reopen Pennsylvania businesses during a rally in front of the City-County Building in Downtown Pittsburgh on Monday.Kristina Serafini | Tribune-ReviewProtesters call on Gov. Tom Wolf to reopen Pennsylvania businesses during a rally in front of the City-County Building in Downtown Pittsburgh on Monday.Kristina Serafini | Tribune-ReviewProtesters call on Gov. Tom Wolf to reopen Pennsylvania businesses during a rally in front of the City-County Building in Downtown Pittsburgh on Monday.Kristina Serafini | Tribune-ReviewA woman is silhouetted in the passenger side of a vehicle as a flag hangs from the driver’s side as protesters call on Gov. Tom Wolf to reopen Pennsylvania businesses during a rally in front of the City-County Building in Downtown Pittsburgh on Monday.Kristina Serafini | Tribune-ReviewA counter-protester holds a sign in a passign vehicle as protesters call on Gov. Tom Wolf to reopen Pennsylvania businesses during a rally in front of the City-County Building in Downtown Pittsburgh on Monday.Kristina Serafini | Tribune-ReviewProtesters call on Gov. Tom Wolf to reopen Pennsylvania businesses during a rally in front of the City-County Building in Downtown Pittsburgh on Monday.Shane Dunlap | Tribune-ReviewBrothers Nico Caccamo, 9, and Sullivan Caccamo, 6, rest a moment on the sidewalk while demonstrating with their mom, Crystal, on Monday. during a rally in protest of the lockdown along Grant Street in Downtown Pittsburgh.Kristina Serafini | Tribune-ReviewA protester holds a sign during a rally to reopen Pennsylvania businesses in front of the City-County Building in Downtown Pittsburgh on Monday.Shane Dunlap | Tribune-ReviewDemonstrators take selfies Monday during a rally in protest of the lockdown along Grant Street in Downtown Pittsburgh.Kristina Serafini | Tribune-ReviewProtesters call on Gov. Tom Wolf to reopen Pennsylvania businesses during a rally in front of the City-County Building in Downtown Pittsburgh on Monday.Kristina Serafini | Tribune-ReviewProtesters call on Gov. Tom Wolf to reopen Pennsylvania businesses during a rally in front of the City-County Building in Downtown Pittsburgh on Monday.Kristina Serafini | Tribune-ReviewProtesters call on Gov. Tom Wolf to reopen Pennsylvania businesses during a rally in front of the City-County Building in Downtown Pittsburgh on Monday.Kristina Serafini | Tribune-ReviewAn American flag hangs from the window of a passing car as protesters call on Gov. Tom Wolf to reopen Pennsylvania businesses during a rally in front of the City-County Building in Downtown Pittsburgh on Monday.Kristina Serafini | Tribune-ReviewCarol (last name withheld) of the South Hills holds a sign calling on Gov. Tom Wolf to reopen Pennsylvania businesses during a rally in front of the City-County Building in Downtown Pittsburgh on Monday.Kristina Serafini | Tribune-ReviewA protester holds a gun as he and others call on Gov. Tom Wolf to reopen Pennsylvania businesses during a rally in front of the City-County Building in Downtown Pittsburgh on Monday.Shane Dunlap | Tribune-ReviewDemonstrators gather across from the City-County building on Monday, April 20, 2020 during a rally in protest of the lockdown along Grant Street in downtown Pittsburgh.Shane Dunlap | Tribune-ReviewJim Barr, of Westview, background, raises his cap to a honking motorist on Monday, April 20, 2020 during a rally in protest of the lockdown along Grant Street in downtown Pittsburgh.Shane Dunlap | Tribune-ReviewDemonstrators stand in front of the City-County building Monday, April 20, 2020 during a rally in protest of the lockdown along Grant Street in downtown Pittsburgh.Shane Dunlap | Tribune-ReviewA demonstrator carrying a Gadsden flag leaves the end of a rally Monday, April 20, 2020 during a demonstration in protest of the lockdown along Grant Street in downtown Pittsburgh.Shane Dunlap | Tribune-ReviewAn official with the City of Pittsburgh Fire Department observes a protest from the steps of the city-county building on Monday, April 20, 2020 along Grant Street in Pittsburgh.&nbsp;HARRISBURG — Protesters gathered Monday outside the state Capitol to demand that Gov. Tom Wolf reopen Pennsylvania’s economy even as new social-distancing mandates designed to...TribLIVE's Daily and Weekly deliver the news you want and information you need, right to your inbox.About 200 protesters — some wearing masks, others not — lined Downtown Pittsburgh’s Grant Street on Monday afternoon to call on Gov. Tom Wolf to reopen Pennsylvania businesses closed by the coronavirus pandemic.The protesters, many of them holding signs with messages including “Liberate PA” and “Impeach Wolf,” cheered when passing motorists honked their horns. Intermittent chants of “USA” and “Reopen PA” rose above the horns.Protesters have gathered outside the City-County Buildings along Grant Street in Downtown Pittsburgh. They want business closures due to the coronavirus lifted.— Jamie Martines (@Jamie_Martines)Protest permits were not issued for any demonstrations, a Pittsburgh police spokesman said.“It’s completely understandable that people are upset about the consequences of the economic shutdown on their lives,” said Dr. Amesh Adalja, a Pittsburgh-based infectious disease and critical care physician. “When they exercise their right to protest, however, I hope that they are still able to observe common-sense social distancing principles.”Kateri Walls said she has run a pet grooming business in Pittsburgh’s Garfield neighborhood for 24 years. She has been closed for the past five weeks with no income, she said.“I know how to operate. I’m a responsible person,” she said, explaining that she has clients who bring their pets in weekly for baths and grooming to treat various skin conditions.She said she had plans to operate the business as a drive-thru but was required to remain closed after being denied a waiver.“They’re picking winners and losers,” she said.A wider angle clip showing more of the entire demonstration— Shane Dunlap (@shanedunlap)Michael Giffin made the trip to the city from Southpointe to take part in the protest.He runs a consulting business for college applications and had to close during the shutdown. As a result, he was unable to meet with clients and business slowed. He had to lay off six employees, he said.“They all want to come back to work. They don’t want to collect free money,” he said of his employees and others who have been out of work.Giffin said one of his family members was diagnosed with covid-19 and has recovered.“Take care of those that need to be taken care of,” he said, adding that he also thinks “it’s time for common sense to take over.”Men carrying weapons just arrived to protest— Shane Dunlap (@shanedunlap)About a dozen members of the Iron City Citizens Response Unit, carrying rifles and pistols, lined the steps of the City-County Building.One member who declined to give his name said the group is a militia with members across Allegheny, Westmoreland and Washington counties. He said group members were standing with protesters “to protect any citizen who wishes to go to work.”More scenes from in front of city county building— Shane Dunlap (@shanedunlap)Danny DeVito, a Carnegie Republican , also joined the protest. He is the lead petitioner on a lawsuit against Wolf over business closures.“I think the governor is totally incompetent,” DeVito said.Businesses did not have enough time to prepare for the closures, he said.DeVito said Pittsburgh should not have to reopen businesses on the same schedule as Philadelphia, where there have been more cases of covid-19.“I think President Trump has done an incredible job guiding our country through this,” DeVito said.Shutdown protests still going outside of the City-County Building.— Kristina Serafini (@KristinaS_Trib)In advance of the protests, Pennsylvania’s Democratic legislative leaders and a University of Pennsylvania health policy expert hosted reporters on a conference call.Senate Minority Leader Jay Costa, D-Forest Hills, said protests in Pittsburgh and Harrisburg were part of a “dangerous trend” that’s ignoring facts, science and expert recommendations about how to handle the pandemic.“Unfortunately, people have started to embrace this,” Costa said.The state’s economy will be hurt worse if a move to reopen is rushed, Costa said.Montgomery County state Rep. Matt Bradford, the Democratic chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, said he knows the closures have hurt small business owners, but the state needs to move forward in a way that’s led by “science, not politics.”“We cannot put people’s lives at risk,” he said.Rather than get into what he termed a “political food fight” with Republicans, Bradford said state officials should work to expand testing and follow the recommendations of the state health department.“We can only do reopening in a safe and appropriate manner when we have the testing in place,” Bradford said.University of Pennsylvania health policy expert Alison Buttenheim said the state needs to do three to four times more testing than it has been doing.“We just can’t be testing the very sickest people,” Buttenheim said.Before restrictions are eased, she said, there would ideally be a 14-day period where new cases continuously drop.There also needs to be more “contact tracing” — tracking down people who may have been exposed to people who have tested positive for covid-19, she said.The protests themselves present a problem of potentially increasing spread of the disease, those on the call said.— Kristina Serafini (@KristinaS_Trib)“We really don’t want people mixing across households and neighborhoods, let alone counties and regions,” Buttenheim said.State Sen. Sharif Street, D-Philadelphia, who also serves as vice chairman of the state Democratic Party, called those protesting Monday a “small but vocal sector of people who don’t believe the science.”He believes there’s a “silent majority” who are more concerned about being safe, he said.Natasha Lindstrom contributed to this report. Jamie Martines and Tom Davidson are Tribune-Review staff writers. You can contact Jamie at 724-850-2867, jmartines@triblive.com or via Twitter @Jamie_Martines and Tom at 724-226-4715, tdavidson@triblive.com or via Twitter @TribDavidson.and help us continue covering the stories that matter to you and your community.Categories:Coronavirus | Local | Allegheny | Top StoriesHARRISBURG — Protesters gathered Monday outside the state Capitol to demand that Gov. Tom Wolf reopen Pennsylvania’s economy even as new social-distancing mandates designed to...TribLIVE's Daily and Weekly deliver the news you want and information you need, right to your inbox.More Coronavirus Stories

CoronavirusShane Dunlap | Tribune-ReviewDemonstrators protesting the closure of business cross Grant Street on Monday in Pittsburgh.Shane Dunlap | Tribune-ReviewA demonstrator who only wanted to identify by her first name, Carol, stands atop her car with a sign Monday, April 20, 2020 as demonstrators rallied against the closure of business in Pennsylvania on Grant Street in Pittsburgh.Shane Dunlap | Tribune-ReviewProtesters carrying firearms, some with a local organization called Iron City Citizen Response Unit, stood in front of the City-County Building on Monday in Pittsburgh in a...

Protesters in Pittsburgh demand Gov. Wolf to reopen businesses amid coronavirus pandemic

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