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| Concert to Test Whether America Is Ready to Rock Again | Concert to Test Whether America Is Ready to Rock Again |
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| Being first is often a good thing, but the opening this week of what could be the first major concert in the United States is turning into a fraught affair. | Being first is often a good thing, but the opening this week of what could be the first major concert in the United States is turning into a fraught affair. |
| While the world’s big touring acts remain on hiatus or confined to sporadic online performances, Travis McCready, a country-rock singer, is set to take the stage Friday for an intimate acoustic live performance at a venue in Fort Smith, Ark. | While the world’s big touring acts remain on hiatus or confined to sporadic online performances, Travis McCready, a country-rock singer, is set to take the stage Friday for an intimate acoustic live performance at a venue in Fort Smith, Ark. |
| The performance, though modest, is attracting outsized attention, not only because it’s testing whether people are ready to return in numbers to listen to live music but also because it is challenging the restrictions the governor put on such performances. | The performance, though modest, is attracting outsized attention, not only because it’s testing whether people are ready to return in numbers to listen to live music but also because it is challenging the restrictions the governor put on such performances. |
| Gov. Asa Hutchinson has said indoor venues such as theaters, arenas and stadiums can reopen on May 18 as long as they limit their audiences to fewer than 50 people. The venue, Temple Live, a former Masonic Temple, is saying the show will be held three days earlier, with more than four times that number of fans allowed in — 229 in the 1,100-seat theater. | Gov. Asa Hutchinson has said indoor venues such as theaters, arenas and stadiums can reopen on May 18 as long as they limit their audiences to fewer than 50 people. The venue, Temple Live, a former Masonic Temple, is saying the show will be held three days earlier, with more than four times that number of fans allowed in — 229 in the 1,100-seat theater. |
| Promoters have emphasized that masks will be mandatory and social distancing enforced, and they have questioned whether it is discriminatory for the government to have set more lenient restrictions on church gatherings than on concert venues. | Promoters have emphasized that masks will be mandatory and social distancing enforced, and they have questioned whether it is discriminatory for the government to have set more lenient restrictions on church gatherings than on concert venues. |
| “The directive is discriminatory because the virus does not know if it’s in a body in church or high school or a music venue,” said Mike Brown, a representative for Temple Live, in an interview. “Not that I have anything against church, but if you can go to a church and it’s a public assembly, there is no difference. How is it OK for one group to have a public meeting and it’s not OK for a music venue to have the same opportunity?” | “The directive is discriminatory because the virus does not know if it’s in a body in church or high school or a music venue,” said Mike Brown, a representative for Temple Live, in an interview. “Not that I have anything against church, but if you can go to a church and it’s a public assembly, there is no difference. How is it OK for one group to have a public meeting and it’s not OK for a music venue to have the same opportunity?” |
| The governor, however, is not backing down. | The governor, however, is not backing down. |
| In an emailed statement from his office Thursday, Governor Hutchinson said: “As advertised, this concert does not comply with our Department of Health directives for indoor entertainment venues,” he said. “I appreciate the venue owners’ working to enforce social distancing and the wearing of masks to protect the concertgoers, but the concert remains outside of the state’s pandemic directive.” | In an emailed statement from his office Thursday, Governor Hutchinson said: “As advertised, this concert does not comply with our Department of Health directives for indoor entertainment venues,” he said. “I appreciate the venue owners’ working to enforce social distancing and the wearing of masks to protect the concertgoers, but the concert remains outside of the state’s pandemic directive.” |
| Mr. Brown said the event was conceived before the governor’s recent announcement, in anticipation that the rules would be relaxed, that he had been blindsided by the lingering limitations, but that he was still working to negotiate with state officials. | Mr. Brown said the event was conceived before the governor’s recent announcement, in anticipation that the rules would be relaxed, that he had been blindsided by the lingering limitations, but that he was still working to negotiate with state officials. |
| Under the state government’s directive, churches are required to maintain six feet between worshipers but there is no ceiling on how many people may attend a service. | Under the state government’s directive, churches are required to maintain six feet between worshipers but there is no ceiling on how many people may attend a service. |
| The mayor of Fort Smith, George B. McGill, said the city would support the state’s policy for reopening concerts because the governor’s approach had so far worked well and because he didn’t want to set back the progress the city had made in combating the coronavirus. The county has had less than two dozen cases and no deaths from the virus. | The mayor of Fort Smith, George B. McGill, said the city would support the state’s policy for reopening concerts because the governor’s approach had so far worked well and because he didn’t want to set back the progress the city had made in combating the coronavirus. The county has had less than two dozen cases and no deaths from the virus. |
| “My hope is that everybody cools off and let’s be ’60s cool for a minute and work together,” the mayor said in an interview — and at the end there will be “a win-win for all involved.” | “My hope is that everybody cools off and let’s be ’60s cool for a minute and work together,” the mayor said in an interview — and at the end there will be “a win-win for all involved.” |
| He did not say what that “win-win” might be, though he wondered whether Mr. McCready might be prepared to return at a slightly later date. | He did not say what that “win-win” might be, though he wondered whether Mr. McCready might be prepared to return at a slightly later date. |
| Some legal experts said Temple Live could face a struggle in the courts if it tried to test its discrimination claim legally, especially if all concert venues were being treated the same way. Whitfield Hyman, a civil rights and criminal defense attorney in Fort Smith, said a commercial business like a music venue is typically given less constitutional protection than a religious gathering in terms of speech. | Some legal experts said Temple Live could face a struggle in the courts if it tried to test its discrimination claim legally, especially if all concert venues were being treated the same way. Whitfield Hyman, a civil rights and criminal defense attorney in Fort Smith, said a commercial business like a music venue is typically given less constitutional protection than a religious gathering in terms of speech. |
| “I imagine that the courts will find similarly in a case about the right to assemble,” Mr. Hyman said. “A person probably has more legal rights to have an assembly at a home or a church than a business.” | “I imagine that the courts will find similarly in a case about the right to assemble,” Mr. Hyman said. “A person probably has more legal rights to have an assembly at a home or a church than a business.” |
| Asked what action it could take if the show were to proceed, the governor’s office said it did not want to speculate. “The Department of Health directive,” it said in a statement, “does have authority to legally restrict gatherings that are not in compliance, but the governor remains confident that the issue will be resolved before such action becomes necessary.” | Asked what action it could take if the show were to proceed, the governor’s office said it did not want to speculate. “The Department of Health directive,” it said in a statement, “does have authority to legally restrict gatherings that are not in compliance, but the governor remains confident that the issue will be resolved before such action becomes necessary.” |
| Arkansas is not the only state to reopen. Missouri has already allowed concertgoers to attend live events from May 4, though people have to stay six feet apart. No major promoters have presented a show there yet, though. | Arkansas is not the only state to reopen. Missouri has already allowed concertgoers to attend live events from May 4, though people have to stay six feet apart. No major promoters have presented a show there yet, though. |
| “We are unaware of any promoters hosting large gatherings or events in Missouri prior to June 30,” Shani Tate, at the Sprint Center, an arena in Kansas City, said in an email. | “We are unaware of any promoters hosting large gatherings or events in Missouri prior to June 30,” Shani Tate, at the Sprint Center, an arena in Kansas City, said in an email. |
| Updated June 2, 2020 | |
| Mass protests against police brutality that have brought thousands of people onto the streets in cities across America are raising the specter of new coronavirus outbreaks, prompting political leaders, physicians and public health experts to warn that the crowds could cause a surge in cases. While many political leaders affirmed the right of protesters to express themselves, they urged the demonstrators to wear face masks and maintain social distancing, both to protect themselves and to prevent further community spread of the virus. Some infectious disease experts were reassured by the fact that the protests were held outdoors, saying the open air settings could mitigate the risk of transmission. | |
| Exercise researchers and physicians have some blunt advice for those of us aiming to return to regular exercise now: Start slowly and then rev up your workouts, also slowly. American adults tended to be about 12 percent less active after the stay-at-home mandates began in March than they were in January. But there are steps you can take to ease your way back into regular exercise safely. First, “start at no more than 50 percent of the exercise you were doing before Covid,” says Dr. Monica Rho, the chief of musculoskeletal medicine at the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab in Chicago. Thread in some preparatory squats, too, she advises. “When you haven’t been exercising, you lose muscle mass.” Expect some muscle twinges after these preliminary, post-lockdown sessions, especially a day or two later. But sudden or increasing pain during exercise is a clarion call to stop and return home. | |
| States are reopening bit by bit. This means that more public spaces are available for use and more and more businesses are being allowed to open again. The federal government is largely leaving the decision up to states, and some state leaders are leaving the decision up to local authorities. Even if you aren’t being told to stay at home, it’s still a good idea to limit trips outside and your interaction with other people. | |
| Touching contaminated objects and then infecting ourselves with the germs is not typically how the virus spreads. But it can happen. A number of studies of flu, rhinovirus, coronavirus and other microbes have shown that respiratory illnesses, including the new coronavirus, can spread by touching contaminated surfaces, particularly in places like day care centers, offices and hospitals. But a long chain of events has to happen for the disease to spread that way. The best way to protect yourself from coronavirus — whether it’s surface transmission or close human contact — is still social distancing, washing your hands, not touching your face and wearing masks. | |
| Common symptoms include fever, a dry cough, fatigue and difficulty breathing or shortness of breath. Some of these symptoms overlap with those of the flu, making detection difficult, but runny noses and stuffy sinuses are less common. The C.D.C. has also added chills, muscle pain, sore throat, headache and a new loss of the sense of taste or smell as symptoms to look out for. Most people fall ill five to seven days after exposure, but symptoms may appear in as few as two days or as many as 14 days. | |
| If air travel is unavoidable, there are some steps you can take to protect yourself. Most important: Wash your hands often, and stop touching your face. If possible, choose a window seat. A study from Emory University found that during flu season, the safest place to sit on a plane is by a window, as people sitting in window seats had less contact with potentially sick people. Disinfect hard surfaces. When you get to your seat and your hands are clean, use disinfecting wipes to clean the hard surfaces at your seat like the head and arm rest, the seatbelt buckle, the remote, screen, seat back pocket and the tray table. If the seat is hard and nonporous or leather or pleather, you can wipe that down, too. (Using wipes on upholstered seats could lead to a wet seat and spreading of germs rather than killing them.) | |
| More than 40 million people — the equivalent of 1 in 4 U.S. workers — have filed for unemployment benefits since the pandemic took hold. One in five who were working in February reported losing a job or being furloughed in March or the beginning of April, data from a Federal Reserve survey released on May 14 showed, and that pain was highly concentrated among low earners. Fully 39 percent of former workers living in a household earning $40,000 or less lost work, compared with 13 percent in those making more than $100,000, a Fed official said. | |
| Taking one’s temperature to look for signs of fever is not as easy as it sounds, as “normal” temperature numbers can vary, but generally, keep an eye out for a temperature of 100.5 degrees Fahrenheit or higher. If you don’t have a thermometer (they can be pricey these days), there are other ways to figure out if you have a fever, or are at risk of Covid-19 complications. | |
| The C.D.C. has recommended that all Americans wear cloth masks if they go out in public. This is a shift in federal guidance reflecting new concerns that the coronavirus is being spread by infected people who have no symptoms. Until now, the C.D.C., like the W.H.O., has advised that ordinary people don’t need to wear masks unless they are sick and coughing. Part of the reason was to preserve medical-grade masks for health care workers who desperately need them at a time when they are in continuously short supply. Masks don’t replace hand washing and social distancing. | |
| If you’ve been exposed to the coronavirus or think you have, and have a fever or symptoms like a cough or difficulty breathing, call a doctor. They should give you advice on whether you should be tested, how to get tested, and how to seek medical treatment without potentially infecting or exposing others. | |
| If you’re sick and you think you’ve been exposed to the new coronavirus, the C.D.C. recommends that you call your healthcare provider and explain your symptoms and fears. They will decide if you need to be tested. Keep in mind that there’s a chance — because of a lack of testing kits or because you’re asymptomatic, for instance — you won’t be able to get tested. | |
| Missouri’s efforts to reopen for shows drew criticism from The Kansas City Star, which called it “a woefully premature green light for socially distanced concerts,” in an editorial. The article was titled, “Why does Missouri want to be the first to allow concerts, live events during Covid-19?” | Missouri’s efforts to reopen for shows drew criticism from The Kansas City Star, which called it “a woefully premature green light for socially distanced concerts,” in an editorial. The article was titled, “Why does Missouri want to be the first to allow concerts, live events during Covid-19?” |
| Many local officials in Missouri are continuing to forbid concerts for now. “We will continue to be guided by data, not dates,” the St. Louis Mayor, Lyda Krewson, said in a tweet. | Many local officials in Missouri are continuing to forbid concerts for now. “We will continue to be guided by data, not dates,” the St. Louis Mayor, Lyda Krewson, said in a tweet. |
| In Fort Smith, the social distancing measures Temple Live has introduced mean the concert, if it goes ahead, could provide a glimpse of what live events might look like in the age of the coronavirus. Fans will have their temperatures taken when they arrive. They will be directed along one-way walkways, and limited to 10 people in the bathroom at any one time. They will sit in “pods,” or small gatherings, restricted to friends and relatives who are comfortable sitting together. Each group, between two and 12 in number, will have to be six feet from any other. | In Fort Smith, the social distancing measures Temple Live has introduced mean the concert, if it goes ahead, could provide a glimpse of what live events might look like in the age of the coronavirus. Fans will have their temperatures taken when they arrive. They will be directed along one-way walkways, and limited to 10 people in the bathroom at any one time. They will sit in “pods,” or small gatherings, restricted to friends and relatives who are comfortable sitting together. Each group, between two and 12 in number, will have to be six feet from any other. |
| Mark Mulligan, a music industry analyst, said it was still too early to say whether the early reopening of some shows like the one in Fort Smith heralded a restart of the stalled concert industry. | Mark Mulligan, a music industry analyst, said it was still too early to say whether the early reopening of some shows like the one in Fort Smith heralded a restart of the stalled concert industry. |
| He said consumer confidence was likely to remain fragile and could easily be set back if the virus returned in future waves. | He said consumer confidence was likely to remain fragile and could easily be set back if the virus returned in future waves. |
| “People are going to remain cautious about going into venues, and small venues are even more at risk,” he said. | “People are going to remain cautious about going into venues, and small venues are even more at risk,” he said. |
| Mr. Brown said the McCready concert was on track to being sold out, and, depending on how this week’s concert goes, if it goes at all, he would like to schedule more soon. “It’s going to be strange for the artist and for the fans,” he said. “But it’s better than what we have today.” | Mr. Brown said the McCready concert was on track to being sold out, and, depending on how this week’s concert goes, if it goes at all, he would like to schedule more soon. “It’s going to be strange for the artist and for the fans,” he said. “But it’s better than what we have today.” |
| Mr. McCready will be taking the stage with three bandmates (trying to keep a safe distance apart but not wearing masks) and said the measures the venue was taking were “the best situation you could ask for.” Fans were desperate for new music, he said, and they could decide for themselves whether they should attend. | Mr. McCready will be taking the stage with three bandmates (trying to keep a safe distance apart but not wearing masks) and said the measures the venue was taking were “the best situation you could ask for.” Fans were desperate for new music, he said, and they could decide for themselves whether they should attend. |
| “Each to his own,” Mr. McCready said in an interview. “I am just excited to be playing.” | “Each to his own,” Mr. McCready said in an interview. “I am just excited to be playing.” |