The mayor of Hotlanta says she doesn’t want the city to become a hot spot for continued COVID-19 transmissions.
On Monday’s episode of Tamron Hall, Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms answered questions regarding Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp’s decision to allow select businesses to reopen.
Bottoms has publicly disagreed with Kemp on the issue, and told Hall she’s encouraging entertainment figures, including rapper 2 Chainz, to take a more measured approach to reopening his Atlanta-based restaurants.
“I know that 2 Chainz and his wife Kesha have a loving heart for our community that really is unparalleled,” Bottoms said. “I know for them, when he talks about laying off 80 percent of his employees, there are faces and there are families that go along with that.”
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After initially planning to fully reopen his restaurants, 2 Chainz spoke with Bottoms and will now provide to-go service only.
“I was so glad that he reached out to me and told me that he would not be opening because he is listening to reason and logic and what he is saying is that I am not going to risk putting my employees in harm’s way because we are opening up too soon,” Bottoms explained.
Meanwhile, Tyler Perry said in a recent interview that he’s exploring a plan to reopen his studios, with the inclusion of health screenings for employees before entering the facility and possibly having cast and crew members remain on-site until production wraps. It should be noted that Perry said his plans are contingent upon discussions with city leaders.
Bottoms told Hall she hasn’t discussed reopening with Perry, and said she’d prefer the media mogul take a “phased approach.”
“It’s about not putting each other at risk, especially in a city and in a state where so many people have underlying health conditions that often make this virus deadly,” she said.
