Anti-vaccination protester charged
New York woman began chanting during public health meeting
An anti-vaccination protester from Long Island was charged Monday with disrupting a legislative meeting on tightening vaccination requirements for schoolchildren.
Rita Palma, 56, of Blue Point, N.Y., was charged about 12:40 p.m. with disorderly conduct and interfering with the General Assembly.
State Capitol Police issued Palma a summons after she began chanting during a meeting of the legislature’s public health committee. The meeting was underway in the Legislative Office Building at 300 Capitol Ave.
“She was starting a chant during the hearing, which is against the rules,” said Officer Scott Driscoll, a Capitol police spokesman.
Lawmakers were considering a bill that would prohibit parents from citing their religious beliefs as a reason not to vaccinate their school-age children against highly contagious diseases like measles.
The issue has drawn considerable protest at the Capitol. Supporters say it is necessary because of an alarming increase in religious exemptions that has created pockets of vulnerability to measles in schools across the state. Opponents say the measure is not needed because the vast majority of schoolchildren are vaccinated and some see it as infringing on their parental rights.
Palma was released on a promise to appear in court March 10 in Hartford.
Palma has been active for several years in opposing mandatory vaccinations for public school children. She became an activist after her petition to exempt her children from vaccinations was denied. She runs a website called My Kids, My Choice on which she advocates against mandatory vaccinations and offers advice to like-minded people. On her website is the message, “Alone, you’re a nut. Together, we’re a tree.”