One time Growing pains star Kirk Cameron hosted yet another Christmas-themed protest with unmasked singers in the immediate vicinity. Local news reports indicate the number of attendees is around 100. The event was held in the parking lot of The Oaks Mall in Thousand Oaks. This is the third such event Fireproof actor has held in December.
Meanwhile, Covid-19 is hitting Ventura County – where the mall is located – hard. The county recently reported its highest number of ever-new Covid-19 infections ever, and the test’s positivity rate on Tuesday was 12.6%, which is higher than neighboring LA County.
There are 737 new cases of COVID-19. Unfortunately, there have been another 6 deaths: 68-year-old woman, 96-year-old woman, 63-year-old woman, 86-year-old man, 96-year-old woman and 95-year-old woman with concomitant disorders. 4,317 new tests performed. Current admissions: 326 and current ICU: 67. pic.twitter.com/k4uqilvznf
– County of Ventura (@CountyVentura) December 23, 2020
Cameron has promoted every event on social media as part of a movement called Sing It Louder USA, which claims to be “Singing Christmas carols in communities across the United States … in response to tyrants telling us how to celebrate Christmas. “
Oaks released a statement calling the event “irresponsible, yet constitutionally protected” and insisted it was asking protesters not to gather in the parking lot.
We do not tolerate this irresponsible – yet constitutionally protected – planned peaceful protest event. We share your concern and have notified the sheriff’s office. We have also reached out to the event planner to ask that they not use The Oaks as their venue.
– The Oaks (@ShopTheOaks) December 23, 2020
Many online commentators for the posts pointed out that the mall could have closed the protest.
“To be clear,” one person wrote on Twitter, “there is no constitutional right to protest PRIVATE PROPERTY. You can kick them out if you also choose. Threatening public health is a 100% valid reason to protect your employees and masking donors. ”
Deadline reached out to The Oaks’ owner, Macerich Properties, for a response to these comments, but did not respond.