The Daily Show: Ears Edition - ICYMI - Nurses Fight COVID-19 and the Anti-Lockdown Movement in North Carolina

Episode Date: May 24, 2020

Jordan Klepper talks to a nurse practitioner and a nursing student in North Carolina who have been counter-protesting the backlash against stay-at-home orders. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You're listening to Comedy Central. When 60 Minutes premiered in September 1968, there was nothing like it. This is 60 Minutes. It's a kind of a magazine for television. Very few have been given access to the treasures in our archives. You're rolling? But that's all about to change. Like none of this stuff gets looked at. That's what's incredible. I'm Seth D Done of CBS News, listen to 60 Minutes, a second look on Apple podcasts starting September 17. While I'm doing my best to isolate at home, protests to reopen the country have popped up all over

the place. They're full of people shouting for a return to their normal lives, their normal abs, and their normal hairstyles. Who has the right to tell me I can't get a haircut? I can't go here, I can't go there. And there are also health care workers who have been protesting the protests. They're trying to convince people to stay home and avoid opening businesses too soon, and these people who actually help us not die have been greeted like this. I wanted to talk to these brave frontline health care workers. So North Carolina oncology nurse Amber Brown skip me while she was on her way to her third week of counter-protesting.

What are you feeling right now? It always makes me a little excited because when I get to basically be a foil to the madness that's about to happen. A foil to the madness that's about to happen. I've played that role before. What are you trying to say to the local government? We want to support our governor. Our governor supports not reopening yet and then a staged reopening. And then he also agrees that until we that to to to to to to to the to the the their their their their their their their th. their th. th. th. th. th. th. the. the. the. their their their thoe. thoe. thoe. thoe. thoe. to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be. the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the their. their. their. thoe. tho. tho. tho. tho. tho. tho. tho. tho. tho. the to. to. the to. to. toeol. toe. toe. toe. toe. toe. to. then a staged reopening. And then he also agrees that until we're doing more testing and until health care workers have proper PPE, we don't need to reopen.

You feel like you want your guys' voices heard as opposed to the small number of outside voices being heard. Yes. And yet, you're the ones that know the virulence of the virus. You're starting from a disadvantage here. What do you think their ultimate message is? They want a haircut. Trust me, I want a haircut as bad as the next guy. This is like my brand, but I've been okay for a few weeks. Thanks for your sacrifice.

But the messaging from the reopen campaign took a hit when the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the reopen campaign took a hit when the virus showed it has a strong sense of situational irony by infecting one of the group's organizers. But some North Carolinians are totally comfortable rushing back into the streets. There must be a reason. Are people just healthier in North Carolina? No, not exactly. We're, you know, the stroke belt. That's your nickname the Stroke Belt?

The Stroke Belt, yeah. To be fair, North Carolina is not exactly the healthiest place. Even your meat smokes down there. It's been a while since I've been out there. As Amber approached, I started to see the usual signs. Somebody's coming up behind you. What's that sign say? Let's tha tha see. Bill Gates is trash human scum.

Definitely an Apple guy there, huh? I get it. The Microsoft operating system sometimes is difficult. Here we are. There they are in their parking lot. Tyrants, answer to God, reopen and see. Yeah, there's really not as many people as they were last talked. Is that a good side or a bad side? Do you think the reopen people are looking around like,

I see our numbers are down. Do we want to look into that? So why are these nurses putting themselves in harm's way? Second-year nursing student, Carrie Shropshire, has also been coming to these events for the past three weeks? We do not believe what these people are saying all of North Carolinians believe, and that's why we're here. What do you think most North Carolinians believe? That we need to stay at home and continue to flatten the curve. We did a great job so far and we need to keep doing it. She's actually right. Two-thirds of America is concerned about lifting restrictions too quickly. And even the local government in Raleigh has taken steps to ensure that both of these groups are safe and comfortable.

Last week they stormed the General Assembly, and so we set up on purpose in front of it, before they got there. The police are not allowing them to come down as long as we are physically in front of it. Three weeks ago, the situation looked like this, but this time, the police keep the two groups apart. So the police is separating you from the reopen protesters right now to keep everybody apart. What I'm hearing is that a coordinated governmental effort to keep people safe was effective? Yeah.

I'm sensing snark. I actually can't tell because of what you're wearing right now. It's an amazing concept and one that maybe our federal government could learn from. But until then let's recognize that these health care workers are on two front lines. They're fighting the virus and the bullshit. Thank you guys. When I see this I realize that thi fighting the virus and the bullshit. Thank you guys. When I see this I realize that 90s boy band formation was decades ahead of its time when it came to social distancing and PPE. I'm with you guys in spirit. Technically not there. I'm hundreds of miles away but thank you.

Stay and strong and apart. The Daily Show with Cover Noa, Ears Edition. Watch the Daily Show weeknights at 11, 10 Central on Comedy Central and the Comedy Central app. Watch full episodes and videos at the Daily Show. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, and subscribe to the Daily Show on YouTube for exclusive content and more. This has been a Comedy Central Podcast. When 60 Minutes premiered in September 1968, there was nothing like it. This is 60 Minutes. It's a kind of a magazine for television.

Very few have been given access to the treasures in our archives. But that's all about to change. Like none of this stuff gets looked at. That's what's incredible. I'm Seth Done of CBS News. Listen to 60 Minutes, a second look on Apple podcasts starting September 17.