Mad or nah? Coronavirus Pandemic N.I.C.E. Stories

‘Mad or nah?’: Philly shopkeepers react to city’s new round of COVID-19 restrictions

Tamara Russell, aka P.O.C., hit the streets of Philadelphia to hear what local shopkeepers think of the latest round of COVID-19 restrictions.

Tamara Russell

December 8, 2020

Bags of delivery groceries being prepared at Reading Terminal Market during the pandemic in April 2020. (Mark Henninger/Billy Penn)

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When Philadelphia recorded an uptick in positive COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations, new ”Safer at Home” restrictions were implemented.

Under the restrictions, which began Nov. 20, indoor dining is prohibited, and gyms, museums and movie theaters are closed until at least Jan. 1, 2021.

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Small businesses have already been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic, with some shuttering their doors permanently. Another round of restrictions will mean more businesses will have to adapt and even more might close.

Tamara Russell, aka P.O.C., visited Reading Terminal — a Center City market home to nearly 80 independent mom-and-pop shops that launched a GoFundMe campaign in October to keep its doors open — to hear what business owners and managers are thinking about the new round of restrictions.

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Part of the series

Mad or nah?

‘Mad or Nah?’ is an original woman-on-the-street interview series from Revive Radio that asks Philadelphians about issues impacting their everyday life.

View the series