COVID-19 lockdown in Zimbabwe: a disaster for farmers – The Zimbabwean

Over the last few weeks we have been tracking what’s been happening in our rural study sites in Zimbabwe as a result of the COVID-19 lockdown (see the earlier blog too). Last week, I caught up with a colleague in Masvingo who had been recently in touch with others in our team in Chatsworth, Chikombedzi, Hippo Valley, Matobo, Mvurwi and Wondedzo. This blog is a report on current conditions, summarising a long phone conversation.

The lockdown was first announced by the President Mnangagwa on 30 March, and was subsequently extended on 19 April for a further 14 days. As of April 26 there were 31 reported cases and 4 deaths, spread unevenly across the country. But of course the fear is that the disease will spread and strike hard. The lockdown measures have been heavily enforced and have caused massive hardship, particularly in the poorer urban areas, where informal traders in particular have been targeted. Farmers have suffered too due to movement restrictions and the collapse of markets.

As my conversation last week revealed, Zimbabwe’s experience, like elsewhere in Africa, raises questions as to the costs of a heavy-handed lockdown, particularly on the poor and marginalised, and whether there are alternative approaches both to confront the virus now and for different approaches to society and economy in the future.

How have movement restrictions affected people’s lives in the rural areas?

Massively. Although you can go to the local shops (between 9am and 3pm) and move about your area, you cannot move further without a permit, and have to prove that travel is essential. Security people can stop you at any moment. You can get a permit from Agritex (extension service) locally for agriculture-related movement, or from the councillor or police. But if you have to move further you have to go to the provincial level. It can take days. You can try your luck and negotiate at the road-blocks, but you will likely be turned back. There are so many police out – they’re everywhere! There is no public transport these days. If you travel in your private vehicle, you can only have two people. All the private Kombis and buses are grounded. ZUPCO (a government-owned company) operate buses, which are disinfected after each trip, but there are very few. This has had a disastrous effect on business, and farmers cannot get crops to market. Right now people need workers to help with the harvest, and although this is allowed as agriculture is essential, you can easily be stopped, and it makes getting help on the farm more difficult than before.

So what about agricultural produce markets?

It’s a disaster. All the main ones have been shut down. There was an outcry and they opened them again for a bit, but people crowded there. It was chaos, so they shut them again. This means for horticultural farmers in our study areas things are tough. Vegetables, especially cabbages and tomatoes, are rotting at their farms. In the south, huge number of melons have gone to waste. For some, vegetable-drying is possible, and people are creating ‘mufushwa’ in large quantities. But overall it’s a disaster. Some are selling individually, travelling to the ‘locations’ (high density suburbs) and selling from their pick-ups. Some can sell to the supermarkets if they have contracts, but demand has gone down. You can’t move from the location to town in Masvingo without permission, and so people just buy locally, informally. Other markets have also dried up. The boarding schools are closed, so are the universities, along with all hotels, restaurants and so on. These all used to be so important for horticulture markets, as well as for poultry. Income from these sources has ceased. Same too with the massive church gatherings, attended by thousands. In some of our sites, people had been growing for the Easter gatherings, but now they have had to dispose of the produce. It’s a disaster for farmers.

What about businesses more generally?

Most of these are closed. It means that as a farmer you can’t get your pump repaired, or a car fixed. You can’t go and buy key bits of equipment. Even if the shop opens for a short time, which some are allowed to, getting a permit to travel from you rural farm and ensuring you are there at the right time is impossible. A big problem is cash. This has been a problem for a time. The electronic RTGS Zim dollar is worth less than the Zimbabwe bond notes, but people are not keen to use cash notes as it might transfer the virus. Even if you have money in the bank, you cannot get it. They’ve opened banks only for forex, and for short periods, to allow remittances from the diaspora to be paid. This is vital for many of us, including farmers.

How are people surviving?

The rural people are on their own. There is a big chain reaction – without markets, producers, transporters, and all others suffer. And then there is no cash to buy food or other inputs. For example, there is a big theileriosis disease outbreak among cattle currently, but people have not been able to buy spray dip chemicals and cattle are dying in numbers. They cannot be driven to other places to avoid the ticks, so they just die. Of course people in the rural areas are in some way better off. It’s the beginning of the main harvest season and, although the season was bad, people at least have something. It’s much tougher in town. There’s subsidised mealie-meal, but a packet of 10kg that should be Z$70 it’s being sold for Z$90. Traders are exploiting the situation. Some are illegally doing business. In one study site the grinding mills open at night to allow people to get food. The money changers operate under cover and there is a growth of private business, from people’s homes, including brewing beer, baking and selling food. In the south, some are even risking crossing the border to get supplies for resale in South Africa. The danger is that they can smuggle the virus too.

What are some of the social issues emerging?

Certainly there are reports of increased domestic violence. People cannot go out, and tensions rise. Some are consuming illegal brews – including spirits made at home. This can be dangerous, just like we are seeing increased drug use among the youth. Normal life is disrupted. You cannot even bury the dead – you again need a permit, and a health worker has to be present to supervise the burial, and a maximum of 50 can attend, but following social distancing rules. Travelling to funerals is impossible if outside your area. Family relations – and life in general – are being challenged by this virus.

What about health services?

Yes the clinics and hospitals are open. The problem is that you have to get a permit to move. And then the nurses at a clinic may not see you. They don’t always have the full personal protective equipment (PPE) and are really scared. Even though there are no cases in Masvingo as yet, people may be dying of malaria or childbirth complications or whatever, because of the lockdown. It’s killing people. The government is investing seriously in the health service, even employing more health workers. They are creating emergency beds, even in the rural areas, but it may not be enough. We have seen what has happened in Europe and the US on the news.

What are people’s attitudes to COVID-19?

People ask, what disease is this? Where has it come from? It is such a shock! There are so many rumours. People say it’s God’s revenge; they blame the superpowers; they say it has been manufactured to kill us. But mostly people are just scared. They have seen the news. We know pandemics, we had HIV/AIDS, but this is worse. It’s the number 1 disease. With AIDS people died over a long time, but this is sudden. With HIV you knew how it was transmitted, and people changed their behaviour. It could be avoided. This is just meeting someone – it’s so contagious. Even thought he’s allowed, one of our colleagues who works with Agritex was moving around and was told in one village to go home – to ‘keep to your place’!

Who are the main people involved in the response?

There are so many. The government actually has organised quite well, it is doing something. Before they’d forgotten the health system – there was a freeze on health posts, people were paid badly and the hospitals and clinics were in a terrible state. Now they see the importance. This crisis has at last awakened the administration. For years we haven’t had an effective health service, but now something at least is happening. In each area there are COVID-19 task-forces – and mines, business people, well-off individuals and others are contributing resources. The universities and some business are making things – sanitiser, masks, PPE materials and so on. It’s a joint effort with government. The chiefs are involved too, and so are the spirit mediums who are seeking spiritual help to get through the crisis. The churches are doing the same; although they are not meeting, the church leaders, prophets and others are mobilising. Everyone is praying! There are WhatsApp groups giving advice on what to do, including some ideas for remedies. There seems to be a unified approach, and all the political parties are involved.

What next?

So far we haven’t suffered from the disease, only the lockdown. We have a few cases only. We accept that this lockdown period is for building the capacity of the health system to cope. Let’s hope that’s possible. It’s a Catch 22. We see what has happened in the UK, US and even South Africa. We don’t want this to happen here. But with lockdown most people are surviving hand-to-mouth. Life has become very, very difficult. There is mass suffering, and so far in Masvingo we haven’t had a single case recorded. Is it worth it? I don’t know, but everyone is very scared. Maybe there can be a process where kids can go to school, markets can open and we can move around because we cannot go on like this for long. There must be ways to make the places where lots of people gather safe – schools, transport hubs, markets, shops, religious gatherings and so on. Surely we can think of ways. Good hygiene, distancing and so on. Once the health service is adequate and built up things will be better; maybe there will be some anti-viral medicines too, like we have for HIV. Hopefully we can then live with the virus, and still survive.

What lessons can we draw from the experience so far?

We know that health services are important, and the government needs to invest. We know that farmers are essential and contribute to combatting a crisis, especially getting food to urban areas. We also know that lockdowns are really impossible – and they can kill. They may be worse than the virus! We also know that we can do things ourselves. Good diets bring immunity. There are traditional remedies that may help. And hygiene in the home and at work is always important. In the past we used to be self-reliant, making and selling things locally. There were often big crises, such as droughts, but our parents had granaries to tide them over. In future, we have to be prepared, we have to use our own resources. In the past we used to make things ourselves, not go to the shop to buy. Why are we importing so many things like face-masks? We can make them. We produce huge amounts of ethanol from sugar, so we can make sanitisers. We have forgotten self-reliance. We have been taught a very big lesson by this virus. We should not rely on the outside, and individuals and households have to take the responsibility ourselves.

Post published in: Agriculture

Isolation blues – Zimbabwe Vigil Diary – The Zimbabwean

Unlike Zimbabwe, television here hasn’t run out of programmes. But better entertainment can be found in following the tweets of exiled former Information Minister Professor Jonathan Moyo.

Moyo’s latest contribution is to accuse the Chinese Chargé d’Affaire in Harare, Zhao Baogang, of meddling in the political affairs of Zimbabwe. Baogang had tweeted that Zimbabweans are only dying from coronavirus in the UK and not in China. (He didn’t mention that Africans had been chased away from China . . . ) Baogang further asserted that sanctions harmed Zimbabwe more that the virus.

Moyo said in response: ‘This revolutionary Chinese friend of the rogue regime is undiplomatically and proudly celebrating Zimbabwean deaths in the UK due to Covid19 in such an insensitive way that would get him sent back to his racist homeland in any other country with a proper and legitimate government!’ After Baogang deleted his tweet. Moyo returned to the attack: ‘The racist diplomat from racist China has deleted his offensive, outrageous and totally unacceptable tweet as if he does not know that the Internet, or rather Twitter, does not forget.’

Moyo said Boagang was abusing his status in Zimbabwe. ‘He’s blissfully unaware that Chinese mega-deals, most of which have been signed by either corrupt or drunken officials, are even more harmful as they rob future generations!’ (See: https://www.thezimbabwemail.com/zimbabwe/robert-mugabes-minister-clash-with-chinese-ambassador/).

Next on stage was Deputy Information Minister Energy Mutodi who blamed the virus on eating ‘dogs, cats, snakes, bats, monkeys, baboons and other wild life’ putting the rest of the world at risk. He suggested that Zimbabwe might be able to provide beef to China instead (see: https://news.pindula.co.zw/2020/04/24/dog-eating-chinese-exposing-world-to-covid-19-says-zimbabwe-deputy-information-minister-promises-to-increasebeef-exports-to-china/).

Mutodi also weighed into the fuss over the Zimbabweans who voluntarily returned home from the UK and objected to being quarantined in student hostels at Belvedere Teachers’ College in Harare, complaining of inadequate facilities with no running water. Mutodi rebuked them for ‘trying to demand VIP treatment’ and reminded them that quarantine was not a matter of choice.

On this occasion, the Vigil can sympathise with Mutodi. Zimbabweans are being deported in their hundreds from South Africa, Botswana, Zambia and Namibia. The Bulawayo Provincial Affairs Minister Judith Ncube says that city is already overwhelmed (see: https://www.newsday.co.zw/2020/04/65-returning-zimbos-demand-hotel-quarantine/).

The government has responded by cutting quarantine from 14 to 8 days. But this has been criticised by the president of Zimbabwe Hospital Doctors’ Association, Tawanda Zvakada, who said it risked spreading the virus as people return to their home areas.

The Vigil is pleased that the UK has given Zimbabwe US $43.6 million to help it deal with the pandemic – the largest donation by any country. As we in the UK look out of our windows at the sunshine we can only hope that suggestions by the Trump administration that the sun reduces the strength of the virus will save us all from further suffering.

Other points

NOTICES:

  • The Restoration of Human Rights in Zimbabwe (ROHR) is the Vigil’s partner organization based in Zimbabwe. ROHR grew out of the need for the Vigil to have an organization on the ground in Zimbabwe which reflected the Vigil’s mission statement in a practical way. ROHR in the UK actively fundraises through membership subscriptions, events, sales etc to support the activities of ROHR in Zimbabwe. Please note that the official website of ROHR Zimbabwe is http://www.rohrzimbabwe.org/. Any other website claiming to be the official website of ROHR in no way represents us.
  • The Vigil’s book ‘Zimbabwe Emergency’ is based on our weekly diaries. It records how events in Zimbabwe have unfolded as seen by the diaspora in the UK. It chronicles the economic disintegration, violence, growing oppression and political manoeuvring – and the tragic human cost involved. It is available at the Vigil. All proceeds go to the Vigil and our sister organisation the Restoration of Human Rights in Zimbabwe’s work in Zimbabwe. The book is also available from Amazon.
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    Vigil: https://www.facebook.com/zimbabwevigil
    ROHR: https://www.facebook.com/Restoration-of-Human-Rights-ROHR-Zimbabwe-International-370825706588551/
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Post published in: Featured

Zimbabwe Disregards WHO COVID-19 Quarantine Guidelines – The Zimbabwean

HARARE – Zimbabwe’s government has reduced the mandatory quarantine period for possible coronavirus cases by one-half. The government says it lacks the resources to take care of patients in isolation for the two-week period recommended by the World Health Organization.

Health Minister Obediah Moyo said late Tuesday that Zimbabwe does not have the resources to continue following the two-week quarantine period for people entering the country.

Speaking at a news conference streamed on social media, Moyo said the Cabinet has decided to reduce the quarantine period to seven days.

“And if they are found to be positive they will be sent to an isolation center. And if they are found to be negative they will be released. It decongests the facilities,” said Moyo.

An armed soldier turns away a vehicle during lockdown in Harare, Zimbabwe, April 13, 2020, in an effort to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

That might be good news for returning Zimbabwean citizens, who have been complaining on social media about squalid quarantine centers which reportedly do not have running water.

Health experts see this move as dangerous. Dr. Alex Gasasira, the head of the World Health Organization in Zimbabwe, is urging those released to self-quarantine to minimize the spread of COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. Zimbabwe has 29 confirmed cases. Four people have died.

“Several of the confirmed cases in Zimbabwe have been amongst people returning to Zimbabwe from countries which had a widespread of COVID-19. So, it is really in the public health recommended good to have a close monitoring of anybody who is returning to Zimbabwe at this time from such countries. So, this monitoring or quarantine could be voluntary or mandatory,” he said.

Zimbabwe had initially put the quarantine period at 21 days, even longer than the WHO’s recommendation.

Gasasira explains the importance of keeping possible coronavirus patients isolated while doctors watch them for signs of the infection.

“The 14-day is the average time – incubation period — between the time maybe infected and the time he or she develops symptoms. So, if you spend more than 14 days without developing any symptoms. the likelihood is that you are not likely to be infected,” he said.

The cash-strapped government says it has so far spent about 125,000 U.S. dollars on food and basic needs of 950 returning residents in COVID-19 quarantine centers. The cost of accommodation is not included in that figure, officials said Wednesday.

Calls grow to reopen parts of Zimbabwe’s crisis-ridden economy – The Zimbabwean

Zimbabwe’s lockdown could have ‘disastrous consequences’ for the economy, say experts, but others warn against the potential human toll of reopening the economy too soon [File: Philimon Bulawayo/Reuters]

Harare, Zimbabwe- A tall, medium build security guard stands behind a large steel gate at Boka Tobacco Auction Floors on the outskirts of Harare, his face partially covered by a white surgical mask and his hands encased in white surgical gloves.

Al Jazeera observes from the safety of a car as he dispenses sanitising gel on the palms of people seeking entry to the premises he is watching over. After diligent vetting, he allows two people and a white land rover pick-up truck to pass through the gate.

Zimbabwe is still in the midst of lockdown to stem the spread of coronavirus. Though the country has confirmed only 28 cases of COVID-19 and four deaths from the disease, according to Johns Hopkins University, a ravaged economy and crippled healthcare system make it woefully ill-equipped to gauge, let alone manage the healthcare crisis.

The government of President Emmerson Mnangagwa has extended stay-at-home measures until at least May 3. But the virus causing untold suffering and death around the world is not the government’s only fear.

With an economic crisis characterised by foreign currency shortages, deeply eroded disposable incomes, dwindling exports, high unemployment, low manufacturing output and a currency that is rapidly losing value, some economists say Zimbabwe simply cannot afford to idle some of its money-making industries.

“The economy is coming from a background of economic decline in the prior year of around 7 percent by government estimates and above 10 percent by other estimates and general low production,” Harare-based independent economist Victor Bhoroma told Al Jazeera by phone.

“Against such a background, the lockdown will have disastrous consequences for the economy.”

Despite the health risks, Mnangagwa is extending lockdown exemptions to key foreign exchange earning industries, including tobacco and mining.

Modifications to manage health risks

Zimbabwe exported $507m worth of tobacco and $2.8bn worth of minerals in 2019, according to government figures.

To allow this crucial trade to continue in the age of COVID-19, some modifications are being introduced in an attempt to limit public health risks.

Boka Tobacco, one of the few companies in the country allowed to open for business, is being made to follow strict World Health Organization’s COVID-19 guidelines.

“We are open to minimal staff only for preparation purposes. No visitors or farmers allowed at this stage,” Chido Nyakudya, the chief executive of Boka Tobacco Auction told Al Jazeera.

Farmers are also being forced to change routines as well. Rather than travel to Harare with their harvests, tobacco growers are being instructed to deliver their yields to provincial depots where they are asked to observe stringent social distancing rules.

Still, auctions to sell tobacco, which were scheduled to resume on Wednesday, have yet to commence.

“They [the government] said we should be ready to start selling on short notice,” Tobacco Industry Marketing Board chairman Pat Devenish told Al Jazeera by phone. “All the tobacco auctions are ready. The industry has also put in place measures to limit transmission such as hand sanitising and social distancing. This is what we have been working on for the past three weeks.”

Zimbabwe Tobacco Association agriculture manager Casper Mlambo told Al Jazeera farmers are also anxious to get business moving again.

“We welcome the plan to open the auctions,” said Mlambo. “Farmers obviously want money to cover various costs associated with the business and to survive.”

Economic and health risks

Zimbabwe was already in the throes of a deep economic crisis that had sorely compromised its healthcare system before the coronavirus pandemic struck – a back footing that will make it that much harder for sectors of the economy to recover once the crisis ebbs.

Bhoroma says the hardest hit industries will be tourism – which is customer-facing – and manufacturing, which relies on imported raw materials that cannot get through due to COVID-19 border closures.

The Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce (ZNCC) estimates that 25 percent of the country’s formal jobs and 75 percent of informal jobs are at risk from COVID-19 containment measures.

“Workforce will be made redundant as some businesses will not be able to adapt to the effects of Covid-19,” the ZNCC wrote. “If the total lockdown is extended without resorting to partial lockdown, some of the leisure and tourism operators might completely collapse.”

The Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries (CZI), a trade body that represents manufacturers, has warned that 82 percent of the country’s companies can only fund salaries for a month under lockdown, and is calling on the government to relax stay-at-home orders to allow firms to resume limited operations.

“In Europe, they have allowed production to continue including that of non-essential goods except in Italy and Spain,” the CZI said.

President Mnangagwa has tried to assure Zimbabwean businesses that he hears their concerns.

“Government is acutely aware of the need to keep the economy running albeit at subdued levels,” he said in a televised speech on Sunday.

But Zimbabwe still faces deep structural challenges, including a 90 percent unemployment rate that has driven most people into the informal economy, leaving many bereft of income during the lockdown.

“Zimbabwe cannot afford to lock down even for a week,” Bhoroma said.

But some analysts are warning against reopening even parts of the economy too soon.

“Zimbabwe’s is just a big tragedy,” political analyst and human rights activist Rashwheat Mukundu told Al Jazeera. “Our economy was already on its knees. Our health sector was also a mess. It’s a double tragedy.”

Should COVID-19 infections rise, Mukundu warned that Zimbabwe’s cash-strapped government simply cannot count on wealthier foreign countries to help.

“Government will not be able to deal with an outbreak should cases rise,” he said. “The begging bowl will not fill up anytime soon. This is because everyone is dealing with the same problem in their own countries.”

Treasury, IRS Provide Cross-Border Tax Guidance for Travel Disruptions Due to COVID-19 Emergency [Sponsored]

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A Decade Behind


Olga V. Mack is the CEO of Parley Pro, a next-generation contract management company that has pioneered online negotiation technology. Olga embraces legal innovation and had dedicated her career to improving and shaping the future of law. She is convinced that the legal profession will emerge even stronger, more resilient, and more inclusive than before by embracing technology. Olga is also an award-winning general counsel, operations professional, startup advisor, public speaker, adjunct professor, and entrepreneur. She founded the Women Serve on Boards movement that advocates for women to participate on corporate boards of Fortune 500 companies. She authored Get on Board: Earning Your Ticket to a Corporate Board Seat and Fundamentals of Smart Contract Security. You can follow Olga on Twitter @olgavmack.

Sheriff Sued After Threatening To Arrest A High School Student Over Her Coronavirus-Related Instagram Posts

(Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

Law enforcement officers and officials are given a considerable amount of discretion. Too bad they so rarely use it.

The sheriff of Marquette County, Wisconsin decided to exercise his considerable discretion by threatening a teenager’s parents with jail over her Instagram posts. And for that misuse of his discretion, Sheriff Joseph Konrath is being sued. (h/t SBWisLaw)

A high school sophomore sued the Marquette County sheriff Thursday after he threatened to take her or her family to jail for her post on Instagram warning that she believed she had been infected with coronavirus.

The student, Amyiah Cohoon, went on a spring break trip with her class to Florida. It was cut short due to coronavirus concerns. Once she returned home, she developed COVID symptoms and went to the doctor. After a couple of hospital trips, she tested negative for the virus but was advised it was possible she had had it earlier but had been tested too late to get a positive result.

As was the style at the time, Cohoon made some social media posts about her health situation that weren’t entirely accurate.

She posted three messages on Instagram about her situation — one saying she wouldn’t be back for a while because she had coronavirus, one saying she might have to stay in the emergency room and one with her wearing an oxygen mask.

“I am still on breathing treatment but have beaten the coronavirus. Stay home and be safe,” she wrote in the last post.

These may have been slightly exaggerated. But they also could have been 100% truthful. The teen probably had no way of knowing. The lawsuit [PDF] quotes a release form from the ER saying Cohoon showed symptoms “consistent with COVID-19.” Not only that, but health experts have discovered some infected patients are testing negative for the virus.

Consistent with what the doctors told the Cohoons, some health experts believe that “nearly one in three patients who are infected [with COVID-19] are nevertheless getting a negative test result.” See Christopher Weaver, Questions About Accuracy of Coronavirus Tests Sow Worry, Wall Street Journal (Apr. 2, 2020).

Whether or not the posts were 100% accurate, the response from the Sheriff’s Department was 100% idiotic.

During the evening on March 27, Defendant Patrol Sergeant Cameron Klump from the Marquette County Sheriff’s office came to the Cohoons’ home. Amyiah answered the door, and Sergeant Klump said he needed to speak with her father.

After Mr. Cohoon came outside, Sergeant Klump explained that the school “superintendent” had complained to Defendant Sheriff Joseph Konrath about one of Amyiah’s Instagram posts. Sergeant Klump showed Mr. Cohoon a screenshot of Amyiah’s third Instagram post (described in paragraph 33 above). A true and accurate copy of the cropped screenshot Sergeant Klump showed Mr. Cohoon is attached hereto as Exhibit 5.

Sergeant Klump stated that he had direct orders from Sheriff Konrath to demand that Amyiah delete this post, and, if she did not, to cite Amyiah and/or her parents for disorderly conduct and to “start taking people to jail.”

The sergeant also claimed Sheriff Konrath wanted the post removed “because there were no confirmed COVID-19 cases in the county at the time.”

The sergeant then told Amyiah directly that the sheriff had ordered him to issue citations for disorderly conduct if her post was not removed. Fearing her parents would be arrested, Amyiah deleted her posts.

Clearly, this conduct violated Amyiah’s First Amendment rights. If the best you can offer is something vague about “disorderly conduct,” you really have no case. Whether or not the posts were 100% medically accurate is beside the point. And the statements made by the sheriff’s deputy suggest the only reason the sheriff was demanding their removal was to keep the county’s case numbers at zero. Secondary to that was mollifying the school, which has issued its own stupid statement about Amyiah’s posts.

Administrator Meicher’s update stated that, “It was brought to my attention today that there was a rumor floating out there that one of our students contracted Covid-19 while on the band trip to Florida two weeks ago. Let me assure you there is NO truth to this. This was a foolish means to get attention and the source of the rumor has been addressed. This rumor had caught the attention of our Public Health Department and she was involved in putting a stop to this nonsense. In times like this, the last thing we need out there is misinformation…”

The lawyer representing the sheriff has confirmed the actions taken by the sheriff violated Amyiah’s rights… if only inadvertently. Not all lawyers are Constitutional experts, but any lawyer engaged in defending someone against First Amendment claims should know better than to say something like this:

Sam Hall, an attorney for the sheriff, said the teenager “caused distress and panic” among other parents by claiming she had contracted the coronavirus despite getting a negative test result. (And the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel — beneficiary of First Amendment protections — should definitely know better than to state this refers to speech not protected by the Constitution.)

“This case is nothing more than a 2020 version of screaming fire in a crowded theater,” he said, referring to speech that is not protected by the First Amendment.

This is a tell that your litigation opponent is the sucker at the table. That line is pulled from a Supreme Court decision that treated certain anti-war speech as a criminal offense, rather than protected speech. This precedent was walked back in a later Supreme Court decision. And it’s notable that everyone who quotes this line to defend their First Amendment violations omits one key word: “falsely.” It’s not illegal to truthfully scream fire in a crowded theater or even to do so while the existence of an actual fire may still be in dispute. The smell of smoke alone can justify shouts of fire.

If this is the legal defense the sheriff plans to mount (“aggressively,” according to his legal rep), he’s screwed. The school could have spoken to the student’s family directly and expressed its concerns with the post. And that may have been resolved amicably. Or everyone could have done nothing and lived through the apparent panic Amyiah’s posts failed to provoke. But everyone got stupid and now there’s a Constitutional lawsuit to be dealt with. Discretion is only a positive when it’s exercised in a way that’s beneficial.

Sheriff Sued After Threatening To Arrest A High School Student Over Her Coronavirus-Related Instagram Posts

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