A GROUP of anti-mask demonstrators staged a protest against mandatory mask-wearing inside shops over the weekend.
Footage emerged on Sunday evening of a large group of shoppers strolling through the aisles of a Tesco store without wearing masks.
In the video, shoppers can be seen meandering through the store, chatting away to one another, without a mask or attempt to maintain social distance in sight.
The incident occurred in Chelmsford, Essex, in the south-east of England.
A Twitter account named Lawyers for Liberty shared the footage, accompanied by the caption: "A group in Chelmsford organised a mass mask-free shopping trip. #ShoppingUnmasked."
The video received a mixed response. While it garnered over 3,000 likes in just a few days, many users felt the protest was irresponsible, and slammed the demonstrators for risking lives simply because they're "bored".
A group in Chelmsford organised a mass mask-free shopping trip đđ #ShoppingUnmasked pic.twitter.com/pbBDrhDxxf
â Lawyers for Liberty (@L4L_UK) March 28, 2021
"Honestly you'd think it would kill them to wear a mask for a few minutes. Instead of a tiny inconvenience they risk their own lives and long term health and of those they come into contact with in passing or meet every day," one person wrote.
"Always find it funny how these people always wait until the lowest infection rate in a spike before doing daft stuff like this. I mean, you never see these 'protests' on a day with 45k+ infections [sic]. Stop mistaking being bored for being oppressed," wrote another.
One man said: "That's stupid, I agree for there [sic] right to protest but don't go into a space like that, en mass [sic] and scare people, do it outside."
A Tesco spokesperson said: "Since the start of the pandemic, we have focused on ensuring everyone can get the food they need in a safe environment.
"To protect our customers and colleagues, we won't let anyone into our stores who is not wearing a face covering, unless they are exempt in line with Government guidance.
"We are also asking our customers to shop alone, unless they're a carer or with children."
