The Exemption in Gov. Newsom's Lockdown Order That Exposes Its Absurdity

Leah Barkoukis | November 20, 2020 7:15 AM

Gov. Gavin Newsom on Thursday announced a “limited Stay at Home Order” beginning Saturday for one month.

“Non-essential work and gatherings must stop from 10pm-5am in counties in the purple tier,” Newsom said.

In a statement, he noted that it was the same as his March lockdown order but was only taking place during the seven-hour window.

#COVID19 has increased at an alarming rate & we must #StopTheSurge to protect essential workers & high-risk individuals.

Today we issued a limited Stay at Home Order to stop all non-essential work & activities from 10PM-5AM in purple tier counties. https://t.co/BJNwvmvfBN pic.twitter.com/q9IQK53Byw
— Office of the Governor of California (@CAgovernor) November 19, 2020

The order affects people in 41 counties, including Napa, which is where he attended an indoor dinner party with zero social distances and zero mask-wearing. He later called that decision a “mistake.”

"The virus is spreading at a pace we haven't seen since the start of this pandemic and the next several days and weeks will be critical to stop the surge. We are sounding the alarm," Newsom said in a statement. “It is crucial that we act to decrease transmission and slow hospitalizations before the death count surges. We’ve done it before and we must do it again.”

But as Deadline noticed, the order appears to exclude people in the entertainment industry, listing them as essential workers, which was not the case in the March order.

Found listed under the Industrial, Commercial, Residential, and Sheltering Facilities and Services tab, the order excludes “Workers supporting the entertainment industries, studios, and other related establishments, provided they follow covid-19 public health guidance around physical distancing,” if remote work is not possible.