By Lorraine Longhi Arizona Republic
A good-size crowd, rallied by a Scottsdale City Council member, gathered outside City Hall in Old Town Scottsdale for about an hour on Wednesday morning to protest mask mandates from the city and Maricopa County.
The move came after Scottsdale Mayor Jim Lane announced last week that residents must wear face coverings in public, as the number of reported COVID-19 cases continued to climb. The county extended a similar mandate countywide.
Councilman Guy Phillips posted a flyer on Facebook on Saturday asking residents to join him to protest mandatory mask wearing. The protest was titled “Unmask Us” and asked “Any Citizen of AZ who believes wearing a mask is a personal choice, and not a mandate” to “put your best face forward.”
He encouraged residents to bring masks, water and sanitizer to the rally.
Phillips, with a mask around his chin, talked with people ahead of the rally. He had a mask in place as he took the stage, the crowd calling out for him to take it off.
