BOSTON (WHDH) - A new pop-up coronavirus testing site is opening in Boston this week as Mayor Martin J. Walsh urges demonstrators involved in citywide protests to get tested.
The city has partnered with the East Boston Neighborhood Health Center to offer free and confidential COVID-19 testing to symptomatic and asymptomatic individuals in a pop-up location in Roxbury, Walsh announced. This comes as thousands continue to protest the death of George Floyd, prompting growing concerns over the spread of the coronavirus.
Tests are slated to be administered in the parking lot of the Washington Park Mall on Wednesday and Thursday from 12 to 7 p.m. The site will be open to all Bostonians on a walk-in or appointment basis.
“As residents take a stand and raise their voices against racism and injustice, we want to provide every tool we can to keep them and their loved ones healthy when returning home,” Walsh said in a statement. “In addition to handing out face coverings and hand sanitizer at recent demonstrations, we are proud to now make available a pop-up site for anyone — with symptoms or not — and encourage those who have recently been in large groups to get tested and limit the further spread of COVID-19 in our community.”
Demonstrators like Regina Williams said she is conflicted because she wants to be healthy but feels these rallies convey an important message that she wants her children to witness.
“They need to know and be aware of what’s going on,” she said. “As much as I try to shelter them and everything, it’s real.”
While there are concerns about a spike, others say racism is also a public health emergency.
Boston is currently offering COVID-19 testing at over 20 locations across the city. To view a map of testing sites, click here.
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