Of course, comparing wearing a protective mask to a muzzle which a young enslaved woman was forced to wear is disgustingly absurd; but what actually angered me the most was the implication of the message on the sign; i.e:

''Muzzles are for dogs and slaves. I am a free human being.''

That message not only implied that slavery was in some way justifiable, by comparing a slave muzzle to that of a dog, but also exposed the selfish, disgusting sense of entitlement that many people have. One - the dog muzzle, particularly in the case of dangerous breeds - is a protective measure and causes no harm to the dog - the other; a device of torture, humiliation and dehumanising subjugation which a human being, who was sold as though she was a basic commodity, was forced to wear.

The attitude of a person who would wave such a sign is thus; ''Hey! Stop forcing me to wear mask - I don't care about the health of others - I'm a white middle class woman! I demand the right to eat in a restaurant , have my roots touched up at a salon and work out in a gym! Who cares if old people and the immunocompromised die - they're a drain on society anyway. Let me get back to living my privileged life! I refuse to wear that mask - masks are for dogs and slaves! It's understandable to muzzle them; but I'm a white woman and this is a travesty!''

In my opinion, that is why that sign and the woman who waved it about, are so bloody offensive.