So, my an online american friend said"My mom didn’t want to vaccine vax cuzs autism". Is he joking? I know many people say thing like that but i thought they all were joking?
In my country which is a third world country no one believe shit like that even my Grand mother who is illiterate and religious don’t believe thing like that and knows the benefit of vaccine.
The modern anti-vax movement started in the UK with Andrew Wakefield, I wouldn’t be quick to square the bulk of the blame with the US.
It’s a global phenomenon of the gullable, the willfully ignorany, and the vulnerable (usually through personal loss or trauma) - and the fraudsters who wish to take advantage of them.
Wakefield wasn’t anti Vax. He was against the MMR jab specifically. He was also invested in one of the alternative vaccines, and faked data to make money.
His (false) message got garbled crossing the pond, and gained traction in America as a general anti Vax movement.
Wakefield wasn’t antivax? He’s made two anti-vax movies now, the most recent anti-mumphs vaccine one ‘Prorocol-7’ in 2024. He’s now lived in Texas for over a decade and is paid by various antivax groups as a speaker and advisor, reportedly as his primary income. He’s been involved in multiple attempts to kerb mandatory vaccinations for school enrollment.
His message didn’t get garbled - he’s the one right there telling it!
No, he was anti-vax once he realized the value of his scam