Georgia suspends anti-mask Ku Klux Klan law during coronavirus

Governor Brian Kemp makes the decision so residents can wear face coverings 'without fear of prosecution'

Georgia has suspended an anti-mask Ku Klux Klan law so residents can wear face coverings during the coronavirus pandemic.

Governor Brian Kemp on Monday suspended the law which would have made it more difficult for residents to follow the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines to wear masks or cloth coverings when out in public.

The 1951 law stated it was a misdemeanour to wear "a mask, hood, or device by which any portion of the face is so hidden, concealed, or covered as to conceal the identity of the wearer and is upon any public way or public property or upon the private property of another without the written permission of the owner or occupier of the property to do so."

Exceptions to the law included coverings for theatrical performances, physical safety for workers in industries like healthcare, and gas masks.

The reasoning behind the law was to curb the Ku Klux Klan from wearing face coverings.

Mr Kemp said the goal for suspending the law was so residents could wear face coverings "without fear of prosecution."

While some officials have worried the suspension of the law could spark negative consequences, specifically for African Americans, the Republican governor had support from both sides of the aisle in his decision.

"People are using whatever they have at home, bandannas, scarves, to put across their faces. I don't want that to be misconstrued," state Senator Nikema Williams, a Democrat, told Fox 5 Atlanta.

"I don't want anyone to put their health and safety on the line from wearing a mask because they don't want to be profiled in a grocery store or they're picking up medicine at a pharmacy."

States like New York have ordered residents to wear a mask or face covering when out in public if following social distancing guidelines was not possible, a move that came after the CDC guidelines.

A majority of states, including Georgia, have yet to issue a similar order.

Georgia has more than 15,600 documented cases and 587 people have died from the novel virus.