Anti-vax poster ‘exploited RIP.ie’
THE grieving sister of a man whose image was used to promote a ‘national commemoration’ event has criticised ‘opportunist’ antivaccination groups for spreading misinformation.
Appearing on RTÉ’s Liveline programme yesterday afternoon, Martina McEvoy said her brother John was one of 30 people whose images were used for the poster, and that it was taken from death notices website RIP.ie.
John, 47, died four weeks ago, and Martina said his death was not related to Covid or the vaccine, but that his passing was being used by right-wing groups to ‘push this movement’.
The poster bore text raging that ‘the dying continues’ and for the people pictured to be remembered ‘in our quest for justice’.
Gardaí advised Ms McEvoy to report the poster to Twitter when she contacted them yesterday morning.
She told Liveline that John was ‘all the family [she] had’ as their parents had died and they had no other siblings, and that she’s ‘just trying to get through the day as best [she] can’.
Martina added that her brother was ‘not political’, and that the families of the other people on the poster ‘may not know images of their loved ones are being circulated to push this movement’.
She went on to say that seeing John’s image being used in this way was ‘very, very distressing’ and that she could not believe ‘the lows people would sink to’ to push their agendas.
‘God forgive these people for what they are putting me through right now,’ she continued, adding that she was ‘raw with grief’.
She described the people in the anti-vax group as ‘callous’ and ‘ruthless’.
Presenter Joe Duffy offered his condolences to Martina on the passing of her brother, who was a year and a day younger than her and who she said was her best friend and ‘always protective’ of her.