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On Tuesday afternoon, a steady stream of customers poured into Austin’s famous music store Waterloo Records. Aisle after aisle, all wore masks. No mask, no vinyl.
“Either you fight and can’t come in, or you wear a mask and come in. I mean, it’s really not difficult, ”said Jessy Schwartz, Waterloo’s manager.
The Austin area is in the midst of a dire Covid-19 crisis after local records were set for most ICU and ventilator patients this week. In a region of nearly 2.4 million, there are only five ICU beds left. Hospitals across the country are so exhausted that Texas Governor Greg Abbott is turning to overseas medical staff.
Still, Abbott has specifically banned government agencies such as school districts, cities and counties from asking for masks or vaccines – two of the simplest and most effective weapons against the virus. In troubled Austin, as in much of Texas and other Republican-run states, right-wing governors are actively obstructing health policies that could stop the virus from spreading.
Private companies like Waterloo can instruct customers to wear masks, but unlike earlier this year, they don’t have a nationwide mandate to support them. And when companies ask for their customers’ vaccination records, they run the risk of losing their licenses and permits.
“Abbott is a complete idiot. He’s the biggest piece of shit, ”said Schwartz.
“Yes, it is,” interfered an eavesdropper.
“I mean, aren’t they Republicans?” Said Schwartz. “Don’t you want local government to be able to make their own decisions?”
Critics of the Texas government have been puzzled by this question for well over a year as Republican heads of state have consistently removed control of local authorities in the fight against Covid-19.
Abbott is now threatening to sue “any school district, public university or local government official” who violates its policies – although experts say masking prevents unnecessary deaths and vaccinations can end the pandemic.
“What I just don’t understand is why we don’t want to get through this Covid wave as soon as possible, district.
Abbott’s crusade to contain Covid-related regulations comes ahead of his re-election campaign next year when he will face major challengers who have disregarded his previous security measures. It is one of many signs of a palpable shift to the right on the part of the Conservative governor who is wooing the main Texas voters with political lightning rods and red meat conservatism.
Greg Abbott at a UFC event in Texas last weekend. Photo: Cooper Neill / Zuffa LLC
“All I see is electoral policy that would lead a state leader to deny local communities the opportunity to take proven measures to prevent the spread of communicable diseases,” Austin Mayor Steve Adler told the Guardian. “None.”
Austin’s surge in infections collides with the start of the school year while children under the age of 12 continue to be banned from the vaccine. Teachers stare at a semester with far more students, the more contagious Delta variant, but no mention of accommodation for remote work.
They already fear logistical nightmares driven by quarantines and sick days.
“I love my school. I love my colleagues. I love my students,” said Leslie Hibbard, an eighth grade science teacher in the Austin Independent School District. “But that’s also because there are a lot of teachers in it. And that’s why we accepted bad conditions. “
Even before classes resume, local authorities have warned that more and more infants, children and adolescents are becoming seriously ill with Covid-19. They fear children will ultimately pay the price for the governor’s anti-mask agenda.
“I think it’s a decision that will result in kids ending up in intensive care, ventilators and worse,” Brown said.
To avert a potential tragedy, Austin has used a spate of orders and announcements to reintroduce mask requirements in schools and on town or county grounds, at least for the time being. They are joined by a huge group of school districts and local governments who have also rebelled against Abbott.
In response, the state government is already pursuing an order in the Dallas area that would require masks in schools, daycare centers and businesses, among other things.
After two Austin restaurants tried to ask customers for vaccination records earlier this week – a practice that has become commonplace elsewhere in the country – a state agency threatened to revoke their liquor licenses.
Justine Gilcrease, who owns Justine’s Brasserie in East Austin, was hoping she could get a similar vaccination requirement. “It seems so very logical,” she said. “If we were legally allowed to do that, I would absolutely do it.”
Gilcrease believes Abbott’s harsh restrictions are purely politics, but they are also openly anti-business. With cases on the rise, she now has to make public health decisions for the benefit of the community that harm her bottom line.
Not everyone is grateful.
“We’re definitely getting flak. Our staff does. There is a lot of pressure on companies, ”she said.
On Wednesday evening the terrace of the brasserie was teeming with champagne buckets, while friends dined in individual bungalows or under an open-air tent. Outdoor enthusiasts battled flies and the Texas heat as the night air hummed with carefree conversation.
But a darker reality emerged in the dining room. Only five of the normal 25 tables were set, with no bar seats. Several signs reminded customers to wear masks. The trappings of a boisterous French cafe were everywhere, but it felt subdued and empty.
Loulou Ghelichkhani, Justine’s general manager, said it had been difficult to keep things so tame. She’s more used to a party scene with hundreds pouring out of the bar to socialize.
But they and their employees want to survive. And she is appalled that the state is trying so hard to break security protocols that are designed to protect her.
“It kind of feels like Texas, it’s not about our comfort zone,” she said. “It’s not about the safety of the workers or the guests.
“So I’m just … I’m more confused and wondering what the motive is actually to stand so strong – to be against the people who live in your state.”
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