Arthur Greene
The so-called “Summer of Love” has been hotly anticipated across the globe all year long.
After months spent indoors in relative isolation, millions of people are emerging from lockdown with one thing on their minds.
But what we didn’t expect, is that New Zealand’s Covid-19 response minister would be the one to fire the starting pistol on the global “sexplosion”.
At a coronavirus media briefing on Sunday, minister Chris Hipkins told New Zealanders to “Go out and spread their legs.”
Hipkins was appearing on TV to update the country on its recent spike in Covid-19 cases.
The line of conversation turned to the matter of exercising during lockdown, and Hipkins said:
“It is a challenge for people in high-density areas to get outside and spread their legs when they are surrounded by other people.”
To this, the only reasonable response is, “Yes, it’s a challenge because you’re more likely to be caught.”
But in fact, Hipkins soon realises his error and clarifies that he meant to say he would go and “stretch his legs” before noting that the media “would all have fun with him later”.
In a clip of the incident, the director general of health, Dr Ashley Bloomfield, is standing beside the minister, and reacts by raising his eyebrows and showing a hint of a grin.
The clip immediately went viral on social media, and hundreds of New Zealanders posted pictures of themselves lying outdoors with their legs spread in the air.
On Twitter, the hashtag #spreadyourlegs was trending. Several users urged citizens to “spread your legs, and save lives.”
Video source: Youtube
