The Sherri Tenpenny Tour and why anti-vaxxers need to learn the meaning of “Freedom of Speech”
I’ve heard a lot of talk in response to the backlash around Dr Tenpenny’s attempted tour of Australia. The number one compliant I have heard from butthurt anti-vaxxer apologists is “She has freedom of speech!”.
I’m going to stop you right there.
Freedom of speech does not exempt someone from criticism. Tenpenny can say whatever the hell she wants but we don’t have to give her a pulpit to say it. Freedom of Speech is not a shield that you stand behind to say what you want without criticism. Australia didn’t give the Westboro Baptist Church a pulpit, nor did Australia give one to Julien Blanc and we certainly don’t want to give Tenpenny a pulpit because while “Freedom of Speech” means you can hold whatever dangerous harmful views you want – no-one is obligated to give you space to say it. Especially a person who believes the Sandy Hook massacre – the massacre of children, was due to vaccinations. This is a person who advises against vaccinations when travelling to countries where vaccine preventable diseases are killing people in droves.
This is a person who comes out with statements like this:
“Vaccines and drugs are a war on the Human Constitution. It is a Dark Superstition that should never be part of the 21st century. It’s Black Magic to think that injecting foreign matter, dead pathogen, animal DNA can give any benefit. Ever.” (source).
This is the first time I have ever said to a doctor: Lady, do you even fucking science??
If people like Tenpenny or the WBC or Julien Blanc or HIV deniers or whomever, have a right to hold whatever horrible dangerous views they want – even ones that can lead to the death of people, we have an equal right to criticise them.
She can have her “Freedom of speech” but we have social responsibility to refute her claims in the name of our children’s health and wellbeing.
Or to put it simply:
Source: xkcd.com
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2 Responses to The Sherri Tenpenny Tour and why anti-vaxxers need to learn the meaning of “Freedom of Speech”
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@ Sherri Tenpenny: Anti-vaxxers are waging a war on the Human Population. It is a Dark Superstition that should never be part of the 21st century. It’s Black Magic to think that measles, polio, chickenpox, etc. give any benefit. Ever. Just sayin’.