Arizona councilman apologizes for saying ‘I can’t breathe’ at anti-mask rally

Scottsdale councilman, Guy Phillips, invoked the last words of George Floyd at a rally dedicated to protesting mandatory mask-wearing in that city.

“I can’t breathe,” Phillips said. He then repeated the phrase a second time, at which time he removed his mask and shouted, “Insanity!” The crowd erupted into applause.

READ MORE: Coronavirus cases, hospitalizations on the rise in California, Arizona and Texas

According to CNN, Phillips was the organizer of the protest on Facebook which was titled, “Unmask Us.”

The event was in response to the mandate that masks be worn in “most public places,” by Republican mayor, Jim Lane. A similar mandate has been enacted in surrounded counties. Arizona’s governor, Doug Ducey, is encouraging citizens to wear masks but has not mandated the practice.

Lane responded to Phillips’ words on Twitter writing, “Councilman Phillips’ comments at his anti-mask protest rally today at City Hall do not represent the values of our Scottsdale community. I share the profound disappointment expressed by many residents at the words Mr. Phillips chose.”

He later issued an apology, “I am sorry about a comment I made today that was the same comment Mr. Floyd had made. He didn’t deserve what happened to him and I by no means was trying to make light of it by saying I can’t breathe in a mask.”

He then wrote, “Please accept my sincerest apology and that goes out to anyone who became offended.”

Arizona Republican Sen. Martha McSally wrote a scathing response to Phillips on Twitter, saying his comments were “despicable.”

READ MORE: Florida, Texas and Arizona see record highs for new COVID-19 cases

Arizona is one of the three states that is seeing an ongoing increase in new positive cases of coronavirus, along with Texas and Florida.

On Wednesday, the same day as Phillips’ rally, cases in Arizona rose to a record high. ICU beds in the state are at 88% capacity.