Oregon health officials exempt people of color from wearing masks outside

Health officials in Lincoln County, Oregon, are reportedly exempting residents of color from wearing coronavirus face masks in public, a requirement of all others in the community.

Official said they made the decision amid "heightened concerns about racial profiling and harassment," also saying "no person shall intimidate or harass people who do not comply."

Trevor Logan, an economics professor at the Ohio State University, recently told CNN that asking people of color to wear face coverings is "basically telling people to look dangerous given racial stereotypes that are out there."

"This is in the larger context of Black men fitting the description of a suspect who has a hood on, who has a face covering on. It looks like almost every criminal sketch of any garden-variety black suspect" continued Logan.

Over the course of the pandemic, just over 7,000 Oregonians have tested positive for the novel coronavirus.