[imagesource: Twitter / @Ridaa_isaacs]

On Saturday, a large gathering of anti-vaxxers picketed along the Sea Point Promenade.

As has become customary at gatherings of this sort, some absurd and dangerous misinformation was thrown around, such as claims that COVID-19 is linked to Satanic rituals.

If you want to have an open, informed conversation about COVID-19 vaccines, with logic that is tethered to reality and a willingness to learn, that’s your right.

If you’re spreading Satanic panic and talking about 5G and microchips, then you’re doing everyone a disservice.

News24’s Marvin Charles shared this footage:

Spotted: Anti-vaxxers picketing along Sea Point Promenade. They are saying that the whole concept of Covid-19 has to do with “satanic rituals”. They also want the government to “leave them alone”. pic.twitter.com/CjtPJkdcrO

— Marvin Charles (@MarvinCharles_) July 24, 2021

Another Twitter user filmed this, and it’s clear he’s not sitting on the fence regarding the vaccine issue.

Skip ahead to the 30-second mark:

Sadly #capetown / #southafrica doesn’t escape the “stupid f**khead pandemic of stupidity”. The anti vaxxers will ensure the virus continues for that much longer. #Covidiots #GetVaccinatedNow #Morons #Protesting #seapoint pic.twitter.com/myoF2A8O7C

— L Franks (@cape_eye) July 24, 2021

SABC News reported on the protest, saying many of those presented wanted “their constitutional right to freedom of association respected” and decried “what they say is information censorship against voices that do not accept the dominant narrative on COVID-19 and vaccines”.

Do yourself a favour and watch all of the way through:

“I’m not a doctor, but…”

“We wanna work, we are DJs….”

The people moaning about our seemingly never-ending lockdown are the same ones who are lengthening it, as we try and edge towards vaccine herd immunity and the easing of lockdown measures.

Last week, the fact that the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA) is evaluating the medical records of 28 people who died after receiving their COVID-19 vaccine was seized upon by anti-vaxxers.

Four of those deaths were from people who received the Johnson & Johnson jab, and 24 from those who received the Pfizer vaccine.

Removed from any context, that may sound worrying, but as of last night, 6 384 482 COVID-19 vaccine doses have been administered, and the number of adults fully vaccinated in South Africa is 2 311 559.

SAHPRA CEO Boitumelo Semete-Makokotlela says that whilst they’re looking into the deaths, “these fatalities do not at this point outnumber what you would generally see in the public”.

Let’s dig a little deeper with News24:

SAHPRA board chairperson Helen Rees said their main task is to establish that vaccines are safe and trusted…

“When we started with the vaccine, we started with people over 60. For people in this age group, they are more likely to get heart problems and strokes or other respiratory diseases. When you see those difficulties, one has to ask, is that caused by the vaccine or is it something that was going to happen in the normal course of events,” she said adding that all factors have to be analysed before a conclusion can be reached.

That was echoed by Tohlang Sehloho, SAHPRA senior manager for clinical evaluation and management:

[He] said the deaths probably had to do with the age groups.

“The comorbidities are common in that age group. Assessments are ongoing, and that would include post mortems and other investigations,” he said.

The South African Medical Research Council encourages South Africans to report deaths that they believe could be linked to the vaccine to the National Institute for Communicable Diseases, so that thorough investigations can be carried out.

Otherwise, social media posts about ‘my friend’s work colleague’ and so on run rife.

This via EWN:

The South African Medical Research Council’s Glenda Gray said billions of people have been jabbed with COVID-19 vaccines in Europe and there have been no safety concerns so far.

“At a global level there is no safety signal regarding death so, I think we would need to investigate deaths that occur within 28 days of vaccination and try and ascertain the cause and see whether South Africa is reporting different levels.”

Science, not unverified social media panic.

Consider this – on July 16, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky revealed that 99,5% of recent US deaths from COVID-19 were of unvaccinated people.

In that same statement, she said 97% of the US’s then COVID-19 hospitalisations were of unvaccinated people.

These are the experts. These are the professionals.

We all share the desire to return to some degree of normalcy, but there’s really only one way that is going to happen.

[source:news24&ewn]