New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said Thursday that he is banning all large gatherings in the city in a bid to stop the spread of coronavirus, but gave exception to Black Lives Matters protests insisting the historic demonstrations must be respected. Speaking to CNNs Wolf Blitzer Thursday night, de Blasio said the demonstrators calls for social justice and racial equality were too important to silence, considering more than a month of protests had not caused a spike in COVID-19 cases.