Opponents of mask mandate state their case to the Decorah City Council

A crowd of 20 people opposed to a mask mandate in the City of Decorah jammed into a socially-distanced City Hall Monday night to state their opposition to the measure.

JoAnn Egge of 501 Winneshiek Avenue in Decorah called the proposed mask mandate "insulting," adding that she felt it was "a power play by a few people."

Jason Madison of 403 West Broadway asked city council members, "How much better than these numbers do we need to do to flatten the curve?"

Downtown business owner Joe Hammel told city council members, "I do not and will not require masks--these are adults."

Those attending raised several questions as well, including whether someone receiving a ticket for not wearing a mask would get a chance to go plead their case before a magistrate and whether the City of Decorah would use tax money to pay legal fees if the city was taken to court by the Governor's Office over the mask mandate.

One of the final people speaking at the city council hearing, Doug Bryce of 603 Day Street, said the mask mandate "denies the objective facts of what's going on in Decorah"--that COVID-19 has been held in check.