Refusing the Covid-19 Vaccination

 

On 22 April 2021, Anguilla closed its borders following identification of “a cluster of active Covid-19 cases.”  This appears not to have originated in a notorious gambling den and house of entertainment for discriminating gentlemen who take pleasure from the presence of Venezuelan ladies smuggled into Anguilla from nearby St Maarten under cover of darkness.

Government immediately acted under the Public Health Act not only to close borders but to restrict movement outside the home, and to order most business places to close.  These restrictions have gradually been loosened as the number of new infections began to fall.  The island is scheduled to be completely open, and for all restrictions to be lifted by 28 May.

Part of the public health measures introduced was the offering of 20,000 free AstraZeneca vaccinations donated by the British people and government.  The vaccine is up to 80% effective at preventing infection, which is an incredibly good rate among vaccines.  It is 100% efficient at preventing Covid-19 death. 

Ministry of Health officials have explained that the only guarantee we have of preserving ourselves from death or serious illness from Covid-19 infection is to be vaccinated.  Ideally, every person in Anguilla who can be vaccinated should be vaccinated.  We have been told that if we can get at least 70% of the population vaccinated we may benefit from so-called “herd immunity”.  This would mean that it will be difficult for the virus to circulate if only 30% of the population is unvaccinated.  We have not yet achieved the minimum of 70%.  The risk is that we will not be safe by the time that the remainder of the 20,000 doses expire and must be thrown away.

Anguillians are as susceptible as people all around the world to consuming the anti-vaccine propaganda that presently fills social media.  There are Anguillians who publish on Facebook and Twitter their refusal to follow medical advice and get the jab.  Justifications follow the usual conspiracy-theory, non-scientific ones.  These vary from, “I place my faith in God;” to “Vaccination causes autism in children;” to “The vaccines are not fully tested and are experimental;” to “I will not let them put poisons in my body;” to ”All you need is sea-water baths to keep healthy.”  And there are many more spurious excuses.

Some resisters say they are afraid of suffering a blood clot that may be fatal.  The estimated 4 in 1 million chance of suffering a blood clot after taking the vaccine is less than the risk of a blood clot from using the contraceptive pill.[1]  No one is suggesting the pill should be abandoned as a result.  There are some minor side-effects, such as tenderness where the injection is given, headache, or nausea.  These side-effects are just evidence that the body is processing the information given by the vaccine to create a protective shield.

The AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccination is safe and effective, despite the several unfounded conspiracy theories and misinformation surrounding its use.  Contrary to rumour, the vaccine will not paralyse me, it has never made anyone infertile, and it does not inject a microchip into my body.

The health risks of taking the vaccine are miniscule in comparison with the harm that contracting the virus may cause.  Even if one survives infection by Covid-19, the mounting evidence of Long Covid illnesses is growing.  Long Covid is a range of symptoms that can last weeks or months after first being infected.  It can happen to anyone who has had Covid-19, even if the illness was mild or they had no symptoms.

Research says that up to 10% of people infected by Covid-19 get Long Covid.  It can happen to anyone, whether you are young, old, healthy, or have a chronic illness.  It does not matter whether your natural resistance is high or low.  In addition to the usual Covid symptoms of fatigue, brain fog, loss of smell and taste, shortness of breath, anxiety, fever, muscle pain, depression, headache, and rapid heartbeat, Long Covid can affect your internal organs.  You may get inflammation of the heart muscle, lung related issues, severe kidney injury, hair loss, skin rashes, joint pain, chest pain, sleep issues, dizziness on standing, a hard time with concentration and memory.  Long Covid symptoms may last for three months or longer.

On 13 May 2021, the Minister of Health of Anguilla with approval of Executive Council made the Public Health (Temporary Restriction on Movement of People and Public Gatherings) (Step 2) Regulations 2021 under the Public Health Act.  This was the 49th set of Regulations made by the Minister to protect Anguillians from the worst effects of the infection since the pandemic was declared early in 2020.  The Regulations are in force between 13-20 May.  They may be the last one if no new infections occur, or they may be replaced by updated Regulations.

The temporary restrictions do not apply to the listed essential services or to persons who must visit these essential service places.  They also do not apply to visits between not more than 12 friends or family members, or to visits to restaurants, places of worship, or gyms, on condition all persons are vaccinated and there are not more than 12 persons present.  Each restaurant and place of worship must keep a register or log of the names, addresses, contact information, and vaccination code of each person present.  Government has explained in press conferences that this log is for tracing purposes in the event of another outbreak.

These Regulations were greeted by an uproar from among the anti-vaccine minority.  The principal objection appears to be that the vaccination qualification for going to church or to dine out in a restaurant is discriminatory, and “contrary to my human rights.”  Attempts by public health officials to point out the selfish and dangerous nature of the continuing resistance by some individuals to taking the vaccination have not succeeded in persuading the vaccine hesitant to overcome their resistance and help the community to achieve the minimum of 70% of the population to achieve herd immunity.

On 17 May, the Leader of the Opposition and of the Anguilla United Front political party published a letter addressed to the Minister of Health expressing her party’s general approval of the public health measures being taken by the government.  She supported government’s efforts to ensure that as many persons as possible in Anguilla are vaccinated.  But she expressed “extreme concern and wholehearted disagreement” with those aspects of the Regulations which, as she put it, seek to deprive persons who are not fully vaccinated from participating in society in the like manner as fully vaccinated persons.

She alleges that disparate treatment of fully vaccinated persons versus not fully vaccinated persons in our small society has already created division, disharmony, and tension among our people.  She claims it gives rise to discriminatory and punitive treatment against persons who are not fully vaccinated.  She warns this could potentially erupt into negative and volatile interactions across the island.

What the letter boils down to is an objection to government’s policy that only vaccinated persons may leave their homes to go to church or to dine out in a restaurant, and there may not be more than 12 persons present at any one time, and the church or restaurant must keep a confidential log of persons present.

In my view, the Leader of the Opposition’s letter is disingenuous and subversive of the public health.  It seeks to undermine the efforts of government to encourage all persons in Anguilla to take the vaccine.  It gives support to the Covid-deniers and anti-vaxxers who circulate on social media memes, jokes, and propaganda against both the existence of the virus and the benefits of vaccination.

We already have too many Anguillians who are resisting this safe and effective protection against infection by the virus.  Government ministers are on the radio nearly every day offering encouragement.  The Chief Medical Officer and the Permanent Secretary Health spend their time on the radio giving the facts about vaccination hoping to encourage those who are hesitant.

No one doubts that government cannot introduce a law to make vaccination mandatory in the sense of criminalising failure to vaccinate against Covid-19.  But, similarly, no one can doubt that government, as an employer, has a duty to provide staff with a safe system and place of work, including ensuring that unvaccinated public servants do not put either other staff or members of the public at risk of infection.  Private employers have a similar obligation.  Telling unvaccinated employees that they cannot interface with other vaccinated staff or the public may well be an essential precaution in fulfilling that duty.

What exactly has the Opposition been doing to encourage people to vaccinate?  While Ministers are fully employed at the business of government, members of the Opposition are now out of office.  Should they not be out debunking myths and campaigning to encourage their constituents to go to the Hospital to receive their jabs?  Should they not be doing so just as energetically as they were before the general elections, trying to get us to vote for them to keep them in power?  How about each of them trying to send several hundred people to get their shot.  How about visiting individuals and families in each of their constituencies, debunking myths and offering encouragement and incentives, if necessary?  Are they, instead, sitting back on their laurels looking to make political points, regardless of the danger to our people and to our economy?

Has the Opposition offered any alternative to the mandatory vaccination remedy proposed by government for keeping us and our visitors safe?  What is their alternative plan?  Most of us have been vaccinated to protect ourselves and the economy.  What about our right not to have to deal with selfish unvaccinated people who have no interest in our welfare or the protection of our tourist economy?  Is not every responsible employer obliged to keep their employees and customers safe?

Why should we have to face reckless unvaccinated persons coughing and spluttering all over the place?  Those of us who have been vaccinated may not get ill from these persons.  But we are still at risk of picking up the infection and taking it home to our family members who are too old or too young to take the vaccination.  Tourists who come to Anguilla may be vaccinated, but their children will not be, until and unless there is a vaccination for children.  If Anguilla could boast that all staff in tourism are vaccinated, that would be a major selling point for Anguilla as a desirable tourist destination.

Our public health officials should be congratulated for being so careful and methodical in their recommendations.  If the advice of our professionals is followed by our political leaders, I am confident that we shall remain safe and healthy.  It will only be a matter of time before our economy opens.  If our leaders falter and their advice is ignored, then the risk is that in just a few weeks’ time we shall be under another lock-down, with some more infectious and dangerous variant circulating in the community.

I will not be taking the Opposition’s protestations seriously until I see them out in public encouraging people to take the vaccine.

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[1]              https://www.openaccessgovernment.org/side-effects-of-the-astrazeneca-vaccine/103646/

The Virus and the Cure

 

I do not want to hammer away at this, but it is a truism that if you protest racism you are going to upset some racists.

Recently, an Anguillian radio host took a turn on his radio station against a citizen who dared to express his opinion of Covid-19 vaccination refusers.  The citizen criticised persons who refuse vaccination, claiming they will hinder the reopening of the island’s tourism-based economy.  The citizen in question is White, and the radio host is Black.

He urged government that, “When everyone who wants vaccination gets it, probably in May, we need to open.  Do away with the 14-day quarantine.  It is not realistic to expect tourists to endure that.  People who choose not to get vaccinated should stay home and hide out.  They should not have the option of hospital treatment, they should not get to work in tourism, travel, public service, or any forward-facing job.  I do not want to be held hostage by people who choose to hide from covid.  …  there has to be an exit strategy, or we will collapse economically.  Government needs to view the requirement for vaccination as a Health and Safety issue, much like hard hats on a construction site.  If you work in construction, you wear the required PPE.  No-one can tell the employer they cannot demand PPE.  Workers who refuse get sent home.  In any hospitality related job, workers who refuse vaccination should be sent home.”

So, the background to this incident is the coronavirus pandemic and the controversy over both the disease and the cure.  The disease is real, as every virologist and epidemiologist has convincingly explained.  In addition to the many preventable deaths, the crippling, long-term damage to the health of survivors is worrying.  It is not just the lungs that are affected.  So too are the brain, heart, liver, kidneys, and blood.  Governments all around the world are working with the World Health Organisation and centres for disease control to develop mechanisms for preventing and curing the diseases caused by this virus.

This has not stopped the many loud and deranged Covid-deniers out there.  Most of them are White but some of them Black.  Some White ones, like Robert Kennedy Jr are persons of influence.  They are listened to and believed by Anguillians, among others.

These vaccination sceptics are busy publishing propaganda against the vaccinations that are offered against the virus:  their approval was too hurried.  They are unproven treatments.  They will inject poisons into us.  They are intended to kill us off.  They are a conspiracy by foreign billionaires to reduce the earth’s population.

These messages of disinformation and misinformation by malicious trolls are widely propagated on Facebook, WhatsApp, Google, and other social media.  They have infected the minds of many otherwise intelligent listeners in Anguilla.  Some have understandably developed unfounded doubts about not just the existence of the virus but, more worrying, about the safety and effectiveness of the vaccines.

So, back to the incident in question.  The radio host ranted on his radio programme for nearly an hour against this “bold statement made by that man.”  He repeatedly warned the citizen that he had overstepped his bounds.  What he wrote was disrespectful to Anguillians because he was not a “born Anguillian”.  His tone was too abrasive.  He was being disrespectful to Anguillians.  He had to understand that, as someone not born here, he could not be allowed to “get in front of Anguillians.”  Ninety percent of the villas are now owned by White expats.  They have taken over the villa business in Anguilla.  They have come to believe that all Anguillians are inferior to them.

According to the radio host, the citizen’s real offence was that he was an “expat”, a White man, lecturing Black Anguillians.  The radio host, while protesting that he was not a racist, that he loved some Whites who knew their place, proceeded to attack the citizen entirely based on his colour and place of origin.  Where, he asked, did this expat citizen get the power to be able to speak like this without fear to born Anguillians?  Who, he asked, emboldened him?  Who did he think he was to speak to Anguillians in this tone of voice?  He threatened ominously that this person ought to be afraid for speaking out in this way.  He needed to apologise to us for his words and their tone.  The warning of violence was unmistakable to the alert listener.

The radio host’s entire critique of the citizen was not a reasoned repudiation of the citizen’s opinion on this public health issue.  It was an unspoken but false suggestion that White people believe in the virus while Black people hold the better view that the virus is fake and the vaccination dangerous.  White people, he implied, conspire to kill off black people with a dangerous and unproven vaccination.  Four hundred years of slavery, he stated, had alerted Black Anguillians to be alert to the natural race prejudice of White people and to reject their views.  Black people were justified in refusing to accept the Covid vaccination.

It was a classic racist rant.  I know the radio host and I do not believe he is racially prejudiced.  But he must be careful about how he expresses himself.  Every word appeared designed to trigger outrage and fear in the Black listener. It was an indulgence in race blaming, envy, and victimhood.  It appeared designed to stir up listeners to condemn and destroy this stranger in their midst, this foreigner from afar who had dared to express his opinion about vaccination deniers.  It was a shameful performance on the part of the radio host.

The radio host seemed to assume that every Anguillian listening to his rant would agree with him.  It assumed that the average Anguillian shared his racist views.  I do not accept that Anguillians generally believe themselves, because of their colour or their place of birth, to be either victims or superior to anyone else.  This is not just a chip on the shoulder.  It is nothing but a demonstration of a crippling inferiority complex.

Personally, I believe that any person among us who refuses to take the anti-Covid vaccine when it is offered is a danger to not just himself.  He is a public health risk to the general population.  He should be sanctioned by law.  There should be a fine or imprisonment.

Those of us of a certain age can remember in the 1950s and 1960s when we were not allowed on an aeroplane if we could not produce the yellow WHO Smallpox vaccination certificate.  No sensible person at the time objected to this legal requirement.  If we are going to be enclosed in a limited space with fellow travelers, we should not be made to feel we are being entombed with them.  Once the Covid-19 vaccination campaign has come to an end, airlines and ferries should be obliged not to accept as a passenger anyone who does not produce a valid vaccination certificate.

When we are relaxing with friends around a social meal or a drink in a bar, we are entitled to feel safe.  We should not be exposed to reckless individuals who care nothing of our health.  In the USA, when we try to buy a drink in a bar, we are asked to show identification to prove we are over twenty-one.  We should similarly be required by law to show our vaccination certificate to prove we are safe to be included in the clientele.

Anyone refusing to be vaccinated in Anguilla should be refused entry to ‘planes, ferries, restaurants and bars.  It should be a prerequisite, an essential qualification, for employment in the tourism industry.  No teacher should be allowed in school who is not vaccinated.

It may not yet be politically feasible to make Covid-19 vaccinations compulsory by law.  But every effort should be made to encourage Anguillians to get vaccinated.  In fact, we need to work hard on vaccinations for disinformation of all kinds.