Coronavirus: America divided over face masks

A supermarket meltdown, which saw a woman throw her groceries across the store in a fit of rage, has exposed a deep divide in the US.

Whether or not you wear a face mask in public has become a major political statement in the US, and some Americans are clearly not happy about being asked to cover their faces.

It has become such a sensitive issue that there have been increasingly tense scenes in the nation’s supermarkets.

Footage from the weekend shows a shopper in a Dallas supermarket picking her groceries out of her trolley and throwing them across the store in a fit of rage after she was asked to wear a mask.

Wearing a mask has become a divisive issue in the US. Picture: Twitter

“I don’t give a f**k about these dumb-ass f***ing rules,” she can be heard yelling as she throws her food on the floor in a foul-mouthed tirade.

It is just one of many incidents that show how divided the US is over the issue of masks.

Another video circulating on social media over the weekend shows NYPD officers clearly breaking the rules of a local pizza joint by lining up without masks, enraging hundreds of commenters online.

Nothing to see here. Just a sign pic.twitter.com/ZpZ8iW6M3b

— Trump'sPissingMeOff 🌊😘👠🦸‍♀️.❣️TriggeringMagats (@RetiredMaybe) June 26, 2020

The fraught situation is expected to worsen in coming weeks as states move to reopen their economies, bringing the mask-wearers and the mask-cynics into closer contact.

MASKS HAVE BECOME A POLITICAL BADGE

Masks are becoming increasingly viewed a shorthand for the debate around freedom in America and which side of the fence you sit.

Those who follow health guidance and cover their faces say they are protecting their fellow Americans, while those who don’t feel it violates their freedom or buys into a threat they think is overblown.

It is a divide which is playing out at the very top of the politics in the US.

President Donald Trump has also refused to wear a mask during the pandemic, whether at the White House where officials and aides are tested regularly, or in public settings.

President Donald Trump has not been seen wearing a mask in public. Picture: Alex Brandon/AP

He has even suggested some Americans are wearing facial coverings not as a preventive measure but as a way to signal disapproval of him.

In May, he wore a mask while visiting a Ford manufacturing plant in Michigan but took it off before he appeared in front of media cameras.

“I don’t want to give the press the pleasure of seeing it,” he told the Wall Street Journal earlier this month.

His Democratic rival Joe Biden has gone down the opposite route by showcasing his mask on social media and imploring Americans to follow suit.

Wear a mask. pic.twitter.com/lejMbH1jjC

— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) June 27, 2020

The situation has also not been helped by contradictory advice on masks from the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, a national public health institute in the US.

Back in January, it did not recommend the use of masks for “people who are well”. US Surgeon General Jerome Adams even went as far as to tweet a warning: “STOP BUYING MASKS” a month later.

However, it is now recommending Americans “wear cloth face coverings in public settings when around people outside of their household, especially when other social distancing measures are difficult to maintain”.

Now, as coronavirus cases continue to climb across the US, some local authorities are telling citizens to wear masks.

Others say they cannot, believing that ordering Americans to wear masks would infringe their freedoms.

I don't think anything I've seen so perfectly captures why there's no way the US is going to be getting on top of COVID-19 pandemic anytime soon. pic.twitter.com/Sa0WNYyYs6

— Cassandra of Troy (@BrynnTannehill) June 28, 2020

WHY AREN’T WE TOLD TO WEAR MASKS IN AUSTRALIA?

While debate rages in the US, it isn’t happening here in Australia and we haven’t even been told to wear masks.

Deputy Chief Medical Officer, Dr Nick Coatsworth, today explained why.

He told ABC’s News Breakfast this morning that masks for public use were considered on a weekly basis by health authorities in Australia.

“There’s evidence out there suggesting that they are effective,” he said. “This evidence is coming out of the United States where the community numbers are very, very high of COVID-19.

Community transmission is much lower in Australia so masks are not thought to be as effective. Picture: Scott Barbour/AAP

“So, certainly in the bulk of Australia at the moment, they will be of no use at all. Even if Victoria, where the numbers are modestly increasing, their use may be questionable.”

However, he said authorities in Victoria are now looking at recommendations on wearing masks.

“I know (Victoria’s chief health officer) Brett Sutton said on a number of occasions that he’s considering it,” he said.

“Our position is that if people feel more comfortable wearing a mask, if they are on public transport, they should do so.

“But they need to be able to do it in a correct way, that’s going to be safe for them. So, we’ve never rejected mask use out of hand. It is just not a widespread recommendation at the moment.”