The Mexican city of Irapuato has deployed wrestlers onto the street to bully and harass people for not wearing masks (outside, on the sidewalk).
Apparently, this is supposed to be some cute little joke, but these wrestlers are actually grabbing people and throwing them on the ground, as well as hitting people with chairs.
It’s not clear if the people getting attacked are in on it or not. They do not appear to be.
RT:
In an apparent bid to enforce extreme compliance with mask wearing rules in public, authorities in the central Mexican city of over 380,000 residents, roughly 300km from the capital, decided to, playfully, stomp out the problem of non-compliance.
Así promueven el uso de cubrebocas en Irapuato, Guanajuato ? pic.twitter.com/mNIS3tblY7
— Alex Ramblas ? (@alexramblasr) December 22, 2020
Footage shared by city hall shows the hell-raising ‘health officers’ on patrol in the local market square.
Los luchadores independientes #Lepra #Moco #Gargajo y #CostalClown y #NegroGarcíaJr. llegan a la #PlazaDelComercioPopular para invitar a locatarios y usuarios a usar correctamente sus cubrebocas. pic.twitter.com/X8BtYVkVWn
— Gobierno de Irapuato (@irapuatogob) December 21, 2020
In the video, the gang consisting of local lucha libre (wrestling) fighters Lepra, Moco, Gargajo, Costal Clown, and García Jr. can be seen roaming the streets, theatrically, ehem… ‘inviting’ people to put their masks on properly, including applying their own face shield in the form of a steel chair to the face.
Todos queremos que los contagios de #Covid19 terminen y cada quien a su manera, busca concientizar a la ciudadanía, de que el uso del cubreboca nos ayudará a mejorar la situación. Atiende los consejos de #Lepra. No esperes a que te pase. #Póntelo? pic.twitter.com/GCjEpuQUqq
— Gobierno de Irapuato (@irapuatogob) December 21, 2020
The initiative is part of a campaign promoted by the Health Directorate of Irapuato to starkly remind local residents about the importance of wearing masks to help curb the spread of coronavirus infections in the city.
Some online decried the “state’s control and surveillance system,” which apparently includes the use of “humiliation and force.”
Other less sensitive souls applauded the creative effort to inject a bit of spectacle and fun into public health restrictions.
“This is how it should have been since the beginning. The response to the problem needs to be proportionate. If the people are stupid, well, f**k em!” wrote one commenter.
Maybe the government sending thugs to attack people on the street over mask violations is cute now (???), but it’s not going to be so cute when aggressive public violence against the people becomes the norm.