Man accuses Oklahoma restaurant of treason for requiring masks, video shows. ‘Nazis!’
Employees enforcing COVID-19 mask policies at an Oklahoma restaurant were accused of treasonous behavior by an anti-masker who was refused service.
Video shared Tuesday by Lee’s Sandwiches in Oklahoma City shows the man without a mask shouting at employees before he stormed off.
“You’re all Nazis!” he said.
When one worker instructor another to call the police, he said, “Call them! I don’t care, try telling them you’re an idiot! You’re a traitor to the country. All of you!”
As the man walked toward the exit, a female employee followed him a few feet away to make sure he left the premises. The anti-masker continued his tirade as he approached the woman.
“What are you doing? Are you harassing me? Huh?” he said to the employee.
The woman asked the man to leave the restaurant. Another employee and a customer approached to intervene, before the anti-masker exited.
Lee’s Sandwiches thanked the customers who helped during the incident.
“You know....it’s tough enough already to stay open and keep the team serving during an unprecedented pandemic,” the restaurant posted on Facebook. “Then there’s humans out in the world like THIS GUY that make it just that much harder.”
A mask mandate has been in effect in Oklahoma City since July 17, KFOR reported. It was recently extended by the Oklahoma City Council through April 30.
Oklahoma City councilman James Cooper said he was saddened by the incident at the restaurant, KWTV reported.
“To hear someone in a video that anyone in our ward or in our district does not love our country does not know our history,” Cooper said.
Health officials have encouraged everyone to wear masks since early in the pandemic to help slow the spread the coronavirus. Recently, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said wearing two masks can reduce a healthy person’s risk of catching the virus by more than 95%, McClatchy News reported.
This story was originally published March 11, 2021 at 6:24 AM with the headline "Man accuses Oklahoma restaurant of treason for requiring masks, video shows. ‘Nazis!’."