New York City will require proof of at least one dose of vaccination for some leisure activities like dining out inside, indoor entertainment and working out at the gym. All state employees will be required to get vaccinated or get tested weekly beginning Labor Day. Some leaders across they country are even considering "vaccination passports." Reminds me of my time in the military when we all had to carry "shot cards" showing that our immunizations were up to date.
Naturally some people are against all this. Conspiracy theorist see it as a sinister plot, some see it as racist...the mayor of Boston is terrified of doing anything "that would further create a barrier" or "disproportionally impact" black, indigenous and people of color in the city. It's not clear how this is racist since everybody, even white people, must comply. Others see it as a violation of their civil rights. Never mind that their refusal to comply could put others, especially those more vulnerable, at risk because it's all about them. Then there was the young man who told me that he won't get vaccinated because some people have died from it. I didn't bother pointing out that many, many more people have died from the disease than the cure.
Actually, the whole issue was settled in 1905 when a Cambridge, Massachusetts law mandated all city residents to be vaccinated against smallpox and a resident and early anti-vaxxer named Henning Jacobson refused on the grounds that the law violated his right to care for his own body how he knew best. He took his case all the way to the Supreme Court.
In the first ever case concerning the power of states in public health law, the Court found in Massachusetts' favor when it ruled that the state can enact compulsory laws to protect the public in the event of a communicable disease outbreak.
History of anti-vaccination movements HERE
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