8 in 10 worry mass protests could spread coronavirus: poll

More than 8 in 10 U.S. adults questioned in a new poll said they are worried that going to large protests over George Floyd’s death could put them at risk of contracting COVID-19.

The Axios-Ipsos poll discovered that 86 percent of respondents said attending protests would pose a high or moderate risk to health or well-bring, as the disease which is caused by the novel coronavirus continues to spread. Thirteen percent said going to demonstrations would pose a small or no risk.

The percentage of respondents who fear protests will lead to an outbreak is much higher than the percentage of those who worry about the steps states are taking to reopen their economies amid the pandemic. 

Sixty percent of respondents in the new poll say dining in a restaurant poses a large or moderate risk, compared to 54 percent who say the same about salons, barber shops and spas, and 52 percent who agree about shopping at retail stores. Less than half, at 46 percent, believe returning to normal work poses a large or moderate risk to their health.

Health experts say it will take weeks to understand the impacts of the Floyd protests on the spread of coronavirus. But the poll indicated that more than 1 in 10 had an immediate family member or close friend who participated in the demonstrations, and 2 percent said they attended themselves. Axios noted those findings mean tens of millions of people were likely in close contact with demonstrators.

A respondent’s age, education, party identification and proximity to a city correlated with whether they had someone in their immediate circle of friends and family demonstrate. For those under 30 years old, 20 percent reported being close with a demonstrator, while 4 percent of those over 65 years old did. 

About 79 percent of respondents also say they worry about a spike in COVID-19 cases, with 50 percent of that saying they were extremely or very concerned. Majorities of Democrats — 60 percent — and independents — 51 percent — said they were extremely or very worried, as did 37 percent of Republicans.

The Axios-Ipsos Poll surveyed 1,006 U.S. adults between June 5 and 8. The margin of error amounted to 3.3 percentage points. 

Protests over Floyd’s death and police treatment of minority populations erupted in multiple cities across the U.S. over the past couple of weeks. Video footage showed a former Minneapolis police officer kneeling on Floyd’s neck for about nine minutes as Floyd said he couldn’t breathe and became unresponsive. The officer and three others have been charged.