WeHo Urges Maskholes to Wear a F@#%in Mask with New Video PSA Campaign

The city of West Hollywood is addressing maskholes once again. This time, with a blunt message to wear a f@#%in’ mask!

The City launched the new “Wear a F@#%in’ Mask video PSA campaign this week. A four part short video PSA series targets what the city is referring to as “The Invincibles” demographic, aged 29 and under, to raise awareness about the importance of simply wearing a mask to protect themselves and others from spreading COVID-19.

The Wear a F@#%in’ Mask PSA is the latest effort to respond to community needs during the coronavirus (COVID-19) public health emergency. The City has had a mandatory face-covering requirement in effect since late May 2020 and has been promoting a Cover That Face, Maintain Your Space message with its campaign of the same name, featuring graphics with brightly colored green, blue, and violet backgrounds and a diverse collection of illustrated characters embracing safe, responsible behaviors. Street banners and signs remain on display on lamp poles and public medians throughout the City of West Hollywood along commercial corridors.

Despite awareness-raising, regulations, and enforcement efforts, as the State of California and the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health progressively provide additional opportunities for limited re-openings in certain sectors with protocols for safety and sanitation, more people are out in public and some maskholes remain resistant to public health recommendations for wearing masks to protect others.

To reach “The Invincibles,” a population of 18- to 29-year-olds, the City is launching a social media-based video series of 15-second videos called “Masks Are … ” with each video carrying the blunt message: “Wear a F*****g Mask!” The series is being launched with four short PSA videos on the City’s WeHoTV YouTube Channel:

• Masks Are Badass
• Masks Are Sexy
• Masks Are Smoookin’
• Masks Are Tasty

Additional videos will be uploaded and promoted as they are produced. The video series is intentionally edgy in nature and each video is optimized to capture the attention of its target audience and promote social media sharing.

While substantial progress has been made in reducing the transmission of the coronavirus (COVID-19) in Los Angeles County, local health officials remain concerned about the potential for a rise in positive infections and hospitalizations in the months ahead. Officials at the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health are concerned that people, such as those aged 18-29 who are not exhibiting symptoms, may unknowingly infect others including parents, grandparents, and friends and family who have underlying health conditions and who are at greater risk for serious illness and death.

The City of West Hollywood coronavirus updates are available at www.weho.org/coronavirus and the City encourages community members to follow @wehocity on Twitter and Facebook and Instagram and turn on notifications for up-to-date information regarding details in the City of West Hollywood.

For updates and information about the current numbers of COVID-19 cases in the United States and in Los Angeles County, the spread of the virus, severity, treatments, precautions, and other important public health information in multiple languages, please visit websites for:

• Los Angeles County Department of Public Health (Public Health) www.publichealth.lacounty.gov/media/Coronavirus.
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html.