Stop shaming parents
Texas actor and potential gubernatorial hopeful Matthew McConaughey, who is vaccinated against covid-19, declared in an interview recently that his younger children are unvaccinated and that he wants more information.
The comment touched off waves of dismay and judgment on social media, where all nuance goes to die. But McConaughey is not Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who misled the public about his vaccination status and used his fame to spread antivaccine rhetoric.
Anyone who takes the time to absorb McConaughey’s full comments will learn that his wife, mother and 13-yearold child are vaccinated, that he supports mask use, and that he rejects the belief that vaccines are a Big Pharma conspiracy.
It’s imperative that we vaccinate the youngest Americans so that their lives and everyone’s lives can go back to normal. Yet even well-meaning parents will need convincing. Instead of busting out the pitchforks, our country needs to do more soul-searching on how to better persuade families about the benefits of the shots. According to a recent survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation, 1 in 3 parents of children ages 5 to 11 said they would consent to their kids getting the vaccine as soon as possible. Another third said they would wait and see, and the other third said they would definitely not get shots for their kids.
Even parents who are vaccinated have told reporters and researchers that they have fears about how the shots will impact their children. Academics from Northeastern, Harvard, Rutgers and Northwestern universities found that roughly 40-50 percent of vaccinated parents surveyed in September described the newness of the vaccine, its immediate side effects and its longterm effects as a “major concern” when thinking about their children. Those percentages were higher among unvaccinated parents.
In response to McConaughey’s comments, U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy said it’s okay for parents to ask questions about the covid-19 vaccines, and he urged them to talk to consult credible health sources. But he also argued that getting the shots is ultimately the right decision, pointing out that the illness has sent thousands of children to the hospital and killed some of them.
“As a dad of a child who has been hospitalized several years ago for another illness, I would never wish upon any parent they have a child that ends up in the hospital,” Murthy told CNN.
Parent-shaming is a popular sport, but we don’t have to play it.