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Iowa State Capitol

Hundreds protest Iowa mask order at State Capitol

Philip Joens
Des Moines Register

Hundreds of protesters gathered Monday morning in the Iowa State Capitol Rotunda to protest Gov. Kim Reynolds' requirement that masks be worn at many public gatherings. 

Reynolds issued an order last fall that requires all people ages 2 and older to wear a face covering when in an indoor space that is open to the public and if they will be within 6 feet of people who are not members of their household for more than 14 minutes.

The nonprofit Informed Choice Iowa organized the protest on the first day of the 2021 Iowa legislative session. The protest started at 9 a.m. and ended without incident just before noon.

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State Rep. Steven Holt, R-Denison, said Iowans should be free to make their own decisions about wearing masks.

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"We are a free party," Holt said of the Republican party's position on masks. 

According to safety protocols released ahead of Monday's start of the legislative session, "If an individual is unable to practice social distancing, a face covering is recommended. Masks and face shields will be made available at the Capitol for those who voluntarily want to wear a mask." But there is no mask mandate at the Iowa Capitol during the legislative session.

A violation of the state's order is a simple misdemeanor punishable by up to 30 days in jail and a fine between $65 and $625. Des Moines requires every person over age 2 to wear masks in public. Waukee is also among the suburban cities which has a mask mandate. 

Sen. Dennis Guth, R-Klemme, did not wear a mask as he addressed protesters.

Guth, 65, said he has seen studies that don't support mask wearing as an effective means to stem the spread of the coronavirus and the disease it causes, COVID-19.

“Social distancing works,” he said. “Masks, I think, don't have much effect.”

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends people age 2 and older wear masks when around people outside of their immediate households. While the CDC acknowledges masks are not a substitute for social distancing, it recommends both, especially when indoors with non-household members.

It also provides a summary of scientific studies that concludes masks help both the mask wearer and people around them from being infected with coronavirus. 

"Experimental and epidemiological data support community masking to reduce the spread of (the novel coronavirus)," the CDC website states. "The prevention benefit of masking is derived from the combination of source control and personal protection for the mask wearer. The relationship between source control and personal protection is likely complementary and possibly synergistic, so that individual benefit increases with increasing community mask use."

Bethany Niermeyer, of Cedar Rapids, told the Register she lost her job as a janitor because she declined to wear a mask when her employer required it.

"It gives me a panic attack," Niermeyer said of masks. 

Niermeyer said she's active with Informed Choice Iowa and has routinely gone to the Capitol to advocate for vaccine choice. She homeschools her 9-year-old son, who has health issues she attributes to vaccinations when he was an infant.

People with medical disabilities that prevent wearing face coverings are exempted from Reynolds' mask mandate. An exemption also exists for people participating in religious services. 

Still, many doctors will not see her son because he does not wear a mask, Niermeyer said. 

"I started coming to the Capitol to fight mandates because they keep adding vaccines to the schedule," Niermeyer said. "They don't put kids like my son into consideration when they make mask mandates or medical mandates in general."

— Ian Richardson contributed to this report.

Philip Joens covers breaking news for The Des Moines Register. He can be reached at 515-443-3347 at pjoens@registermedia.com or on Twitter @Philip_Joens. 

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