Gavin Louis Uridel is not a “protesty kind of guy.” He’s not an activist perpetually enraged over broken systems and broken people. He’s a pretty happy guy—a jacked-up fitness enthusiast with shoulder-length blond dreadlocks, beach-kissed skin, and vein-popping thighs. He quit his job as a lawyer to open a gym next to the Pacific waters after professing faith in Jesus Christ.

For the first time in his life, Uridel joined a protest rally on May 1 in San Diego. Granted, his sign read, “I thought there would be free donuts,” and his gear was a creepy face mask from the horror film The Purge. Despite the humor, Uridel was dead serious when he walked with hundreds of other protesters in downtown San Diego and shouted about the state’s COVID-19 restrictions. There he met other owners of small businesses—restaurants, hair salons, barber shops, flower shops, and nail salons. They looked at each other and said, “You too? We can’t work, we can’t make money. This is stupid.”

For the first time since Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a statewide shelter-in-place order on March 19, Uridel felt like his voice mattered: “It felt great, it felt liberating, that I’m not alone. You know, you feel so alone and isolated sitting at home, wondering when they’ll let you out.” 

Elsewhere in California—Los Angeles, Huntington Beach, San Francisco, and Sacramento—thousands more people gathered to demand the state fully reopen. Some stayed in their American flag-adorned cars honking. Planes circled above flapping banners (one had Newsom’s face next to the words “End His Tyranny”) while most people thronged the sidewalks chanting “USA! USA!” and “Freedom! Freedom!” The majority did not practice social distancing or wear face coverings. In Sacramento, the California Highway Patrol arrested 32 protesters and cited them for violating a public health order, further angering protesters who say the state is infringing upon their constitutional rights. 

These are trying times for everybody. An April poll among Californians showed that more than three-fourths are worried about themselves or someone in their family getting sick from the coronavirus. But about an equal number of Californians also said they’re worried about the pandemic’s effect on their personal finances. The tension becomes more apparent as government officials gauge when to lift lockdown orders, business owners contemplate how long they can afford to stay closed, and protesters show the world how angry they are.

GOVERNMENT LEADERS FACE DUELING PRESSURES from two sides: On one, many Californians are frustrated and angry that their governor is extending the economic shutdown without a definite end date, even as unemployment numbers continue to soar above 20 percent. They say their constitutional rights and livelihoods are at stake. California has basically flattened the coronavirus curve—so why continue such strict restrictions?

On the other side, many healthcare workers and public health experts like Dr. Anthony Fauci warn that reopening too quickly will cause even more infections, deaths and economic hardship. About 2,800 Californians and more than 84,000 Americans have died due to COVID-19, and the death rate in California has not declined in the past month. Though the state has significantly increased its capacity for coronavirus testing, it’s still about 20,000 shy of its goal to test more than 61,000 people per day. Meanwhile, serologic testing suggests that the majority of the population is still at risk of infection, and a second wave of lockdowns would damage the economy even more.

So far, Newsom has tilted toward the more precautionary side. In late April, he unveiled a four-phase plan to reopen California while warning that he would quickly reinstate restrictions if coronavirus cases tick back up. He gave no specific dates for when the state will enter each phase. Some businesses, such as florists, bookstores, and some office spaces, can open but under strict rules: Retail shops can only do curbside pickup, every business must implement social distancing rules, and most restaurants still cannot allow dine-in services. “Science, not politics, must be the guide,” Newsom has repeated. “The virus has not gone away.”

Newsom’s plan irritated leaders of smaller, rural counties who say they have not seen as many cases and should be able to reopen faster than the rest of the state. Two counties, El Dorado and Butte, on May 12 began an accelerated path through Newsom’s phased plan, and more than a dozen other counties are also on track to reopen more businesses. To do so, Newsom set various benchmarks, including no COVID-19-related deaths for two weeks and only one new case per 10,000 for two weeks. Those two criteria will be impossible for higher-density counties such as San Diego and Orange to meet.

Several Southern California counties are discussing a joint effort to persuade Newsom to revise his benchmarks, while some smaller counties have already defied the governor’s orders by reopening shopping malls, gyms, salons, dine-in restaurants, and tattoo parlors. Only Los Angeles County (which has about half of the entire state’s confirmed COVID-19 cases and deaths) has decided to move much slower than the governor: County officials say the shutdowns will continue indefinitely.

MEANWHILE, SOME CITIZENS lost patience waiting for permission to return to work. Jacob Lewis, owner of The Gym in San Bernardino County, was one of the first businesses in California to reopen against orders, risking public umbrage and legal repercussions. Lewis opened his 24/7 gym at 6 a.m. on May 1, receiving a torrent of both support and criticism from people across the country. When I called him several days later, I heard the phone in his gym ring every three minutes with calls from gym members, random strangers, and other business owners seeking advice. 

Lewis decided to reopen his gym after members told him they’re struggling with depression, addiction, and other mental health issues during the shutdown: “I’m not an emotional guy at all, and it brought tears to my eyes. I realized now after this whole situation how much gyms are more mental health than they are physical health.” He wants to know if the Costco next door can open while taking certain precautions because it’s deemed “essential,” why can’t gyms? 

Lewis said he’s following the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s guidelines: He shut off every other piece of cardio equipment so people can maintain at least 6 feet of distance; he requires members wipe down equipment after each use; and he shut down showers, steam rooms, and group classes. Though some outraged members have canceled memberships, Lewis isn’t worried about long-term business consequences to his decision: “Unfortunately, this is the first time in my life when I’m not looking at this as a business move … I’m laying it all out for the people who trusted in me to give them a service—that’s it.”

His action inspired other business owners to do the same. One of them is Uridel, who was at the San Diego protest. He decided to open his MetroFlex Gym in Oceanside on May 8. More than half his gym members are active-duty service members or veterans, and many suffer from PTSD. Some are former addicts. For them, the gym is therapy, an outlet to release stress and anxiety. Uridel said he struggled with his conscience: “Should I risk a citation, or risk someone killing themselves?”