The scoreboard says Columbia’s face mask law is working. Will the critics admit it?

It’s now been 10 days since the city of Columbia enacted a law requiring people to wear face masks in public places in an effort to help stem South Carolina’s soaring COVID-19 rates.

So has the sky come falling toward Earth in Soda City over the last 10 days?

No.

Nope.

Not at all.

Given that fact isn’t it time for of all of the critics who erupted in rage when Columbia Mayor Steve Benjamin and City Council passed the face mask requirement — and who predicted it would have a negligible or even negative effect — to admit they’re wrong?

There’s no other conclusion to reach at the 10-day mark of Columbia’s face mask law.

Changing behavior

Has the law changed behavior in Columbia?

Yes.

It became official on June 26, and almost overnight there was a striking, visual increase in the number of people wearing face masks in public places and on public streets all across the city.

Predictable holdouts

Are there people in Columbia who still aren’t wearing masks?

Yes.

But that was always to be expected — and for two reasons:

▪ No law generates 100% compliance, because no law is enforced 100% of the time.

▪ There will always be people who will reflexively defy anything that seeks to change individual behavior — even to the point where if you simply told these folks to have a nice day, they’d resentfully accuse you of threatening their cherished right to have a horrible one.

So let’s face it: these people will never be swayed to wear face masks no matter how often they’re told that doing so could reduce the threat of COVID-19 in Columbia.

That’s reality.

That’s why Columbia’s stubbornly mask-free population should not be publicly confronted or harassed by fellow citizens who are wearing masks: while refusing to use a face covering during a raging pandemic is clearly a display of poor judgment, it shouldn’t lead to another that sees people assume the role of the “face mask police.”

But that’s also why Columbia’s face mask law shouldn’t be judged on whether it leads every person in the city to wear a mask; rather, it should be judged on whether it motivates more people who weren’t wearing masks to start doing so.

Is the law meeting that reasonable goal? Without a doubt, it is.

It’s influencing others

Has Columbia’s face mask law had a clear influence on others?

Yes.

In the days since Columbia put its requirement in effect, Forest Acres, Lexington, Richland County, Cayce, West Columbia and Irmo have passed similar laws directing citizens to wear face coverings in public places.

So much, then, for the naysayers’ argument that Columbia’s move would be an empty gesture given Gov. Henry McMaster’s ongoing refusal to implement a statewide face mask requirement.

Leveling the field

Has Columbia’s face mask law had an obvious, ominous negative impact on area businesses? Has it placed an obvious, onerous burden on area businesses seeking to, well, do business?

No and no.

It certainly hasn’t deterred people from flocking to establishments in downtown Columbia over the past 10 days, as anyone who has traveled the city’s main streets can attest.

And the fact is the city’s requirement on face masks in public places has actually helped Columbia businesses by putting them all on level footing.

The law has taken the onus off individual businesses that were previously under immense pressure to make their own decisions on whether to have their employees wear masks — much of that heat, by the way, coming from customers alarmed that workers weren’t wearing face coverings while interacting with the public.

Scoreboard doesn’t lie

In sports, it’s often said that the scoreboard never lies — and it’s fair to use that same adage in judging the effectiveness of Columbia’s face mask law 10 days into its introduction.

It’s changing the behavior of individuals in Columbia in a constructive way, but without infringing on individual rights of Columbia residents in an intrusive way.

It’s stirring others in the area’s public sector to act, but without hindering the ability of those in the area’s private sector to operate.

So the scoreboard suggests that Columbia’s face mask requirement has been a winning move by the city — and for those who live, work and carry out business in it, too.

And, no, the scoreboard isn’t lying.

This story was originally published July 6, 2020 at 8:42 AM.