'I just hope people see that we are not the enemy': ICU nurse, 27, who stood up to anti-lockdown demonstrators in Arizona says healthcare workers will still 'take care of them' if they fall ill

An ICU nurse pictured in a standoff with protesters at an anti-lockdown rally in Arizona is speaking out - three days after photos of the event were beamed right around the world.  

Lauren Leander, 27, was among a handful of medical professionals who turned out to counter-protest at the 'Patriot's Day Rally' in Phoenix on Monday, where nearly 1,000 people marched on the state Capitol Building demanding an end to stay-at-home orders put in place amid the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Leander was photographed wearing a medical mask and scrubs as she and her colleagues were heckled by the protesters, who brandished placards stating: 'Your cure is worse than the disease'.

But despite the intensity of the protest, Leander told told KNXV Thursday that she feels no ill-will to those who stood against her. 

'I just hope people see that nurses are not the enemy and we'll take care of them one way or the other,' she stated. 

'I don't care if you believe in this virus or not or truly what your opinion is of it, if these people show up in my ICU we will take care of them one way or another.'

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Lauren Leander, 27, was among a handful of medical professionals who turned out to counter-protest at the 'Patriot's Day Rally' in Phoenix on Monday, where nearly 1,000 people marched on the state Capitol Building to demand an end to stay-at-home orders put in place amid the COVID-19 pandemic

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Photos of Leander standing in silent but defiant protest were beamed right around the world

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Leander was photographed wearing a medical mask and scrubs as she and her colleagues were heckled by the protesters, who brandished placards stating: 'Your cure is worse than the disease' 

Leander works at Phoenix's Banner University Medical Center where she has been treating patients with COVID-19 for the past month. The city has been hit hard by the coronavirus, with nearly 3,000 confirmed cases and 115 deaths.  

Many of the anti-lockdown protesters who clashed with Leander and her colleagues are fans of President Trump. Many donned Make America Great Again hats and several waved signs in support of the Commander-in-chief. 

But Leander says she had no political motivations when showing up to the rally. 

'This isn't about politics, choosing sides, this virus does not discriminate at all,' she told KNXV Thursday. 

'It's taking lives from one end of the spectrum to another. I know it's wishful thinking but I just would love if we just had that common ground with fighting this virus.' 

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'This virus doesn't discriminate': Leander says she had no political motivations when showing up to the rally

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Whilst the nurses were outnumbered, they stood defiantly outside the Arizona Capitol Building 

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Furious protesters claimed the lockdown orders were causing more damage than the spread of the virus

Leander instead says her intention when turning out to the protest was to make sure that an alternative perspective was represented. 

'Our main message was that we wanted healthcare workers' voices to be heard louder than misinformation and fear,' she stated. 

'There will be a calm and controlled manner to reopen our economy and our state...you don't open the flood gates and release everyone at once.' 

The anti-lockdown protesters have been supported by a number of politicians, including former Arizona state Senator Dr. Kelli Ward. 

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A Protester attending a rally at the Capitol to 're-open' Arizona against the governor's stay-at-home order due to the coronavirus argues with a caregiver

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Protesters carry automatic assault rifles as they march towards Arizona's state Captiol on Wednesday

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Protesters rally at the Capitol to 're-open' Arizona against the governor's stay-at-home order

In a tweet posted the day after the rally, Dr. Ward questioned the motivations of the nurses who turned out to counter-protest, describing them as 'actors playing parts'. 

The sentiment frustrated Leander, who stated: 'I wish she could be in my shoes for a day, I'd have her put on a pair of scrubs and walk with me'.

However, Leander has been hailed a hero by many in her profession for bravely standing up to represent healthcare workers on the frontline of the pandemic. 

Among them was one from Zahid Seed, a friend and colleauge of Leander. 

'Today she stood up for healthcare workers as protesters descended upon the State Capitol. She stood in silence as people called her a "fake nurse" & "paid actor" amongst other horrendous things.

'Ironically, she has spent many days in the Covid ICU caring for our sickest patients. She stood for those who are on life support and have no voice of their own. She stood for the 42,604 Americans who have died so far.

'When they inevitably contract Covid-19 and transmit it to their loved ones, Lauren will be one of the first faces they will see when they are admitted to the ICU,' Seed continued. 

'She may also be one of the last faces that they ever see.' 

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Leander has been hailed a hero by many in her profession for bravely standing up to represent healthcare workers on the frontline of the pandemic