“If people are not educated and they don’t know the risk, of course, it’s a very, very high risk possibility to be a spreader,” said Joe Hawkins, director of the Oakland LGBTQ Community Center.

But his organization has also made a point not to dissuade people from attending the party, Hawkins said.

“You can tell people ‘Do not do this,’ and I just think that here in this country, people have a problem with that,” he said.

“We’re really trying to meet people where they are and just educate them about what’s really factual about this monkeypox and its spread.”