by Claire Chretien at LifeSite News
Well over 100 American universities mandate students receive coronavirus vaccines to attend. Employers are saying the unvaccinated will be fired or simply not hired. And in some circles it’s now commonplace not to ask people whether they’re vaccinated, but just which vaccine they’ve taken, with the assumption being all normal and sane people take this injection, or will take it the first chance they get.
What is the most prudent way to respond? What are Americans’ rights in these situations?
First, a very obvious disclaimer: Nothing in this article is intended to be or should be taken as legal or medical advice. It’s merely a compilation of publicly available information and resources with some of my own opinion sprinkled in.
As Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., nephew of former President John F. Kennedy, wrote in a recent letter to Rutgers University about its vaccine mandate, “no court has ever upheld a mandate for an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) vaccine, which all COVID vaccines are at present.”
He continued:
In fact, a federal court has held that EUA vaccines cannot be mandated to soldiers in the U.S. military, who enjoy far fewer rights than civilians, Doe #1 v. Rumsfeld … That court [remarkably] held “… the United States cannot demand that members of the armed forces also serve as guinea pigs for experimental drugs.” Id. at 135.
Federal law 21 U.S.C. § 360bbb-3(e)(1)(A)(ii)(III) requires that the person to whom an EUA vaccine is administered be advised, “of the option to accept or refuse administration of the product, of the consequences, if any, of refusing administration of the product, and of the alternatives to the product that are available and of their benefits and risks.” The reason for the right of refusal stems from the fact that EUA products are by definition experimental. Under the Nuremberg Code, no one may be coerced to participate in a medical experiment. Consent of the individual is “absolutely essential.” The liability for forced participation in a medical experiment, not to mention injury from such coerced medical intervention, may be incalculable.
That, and a recent guidance from the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health warning (see the employment section below) that employers who mandate their employees receive coronavirus vaccines may be liable if the employee suffers a vaccine injury, haven’t stopped American companies from mandating that workers receive the shots — or simply declaring that they’ll only hire already vaccinated people. Neither has it stopped universities from pushing these injections on their students.
State law matters: For a number of the below scenarios, you will have much recourse if you live in a state like Florida, rather than New York or California.
A stranger, friend, or family member asks if you’ve received a coronavirus vaccine.
There are a number of ways to navigate this one. The simplest is six words: “I don’t disclose my vaccine status.” Depending on how comfortable you are sharing your “unvaccinated” status, you could also explain your reasons for not taking the vaccine (allergies, ethical concerns about the use of aborted babies in various stages of vaccine development, immunity from having already been infected with the virus, unwillingness to receive a medical treatment for which the manufacturer is not liable, concerns about the vaccine’s impacts on fertility, unwillingness to take a vaccine that’s not received full approval from the FDA).
You also have the option of responding with an equally personal medical question.
Your employer is trying to force you to take the vaccine.
Read this article, and then this one, and then this one. Although there is precedent for employers forcing employees to take certain vaccines (for example, hospitals mandating flu shots), it’s a grey area with coronavirus vaccines because they’re experimental and don’t have regular FDA approval (yet). It seems (and again, this is my perspective as a laywoman — a lowly journalist, not a lawyer) that if (when?) the FDA gives full approval, you’ll have fewer rights.
The federal government’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration recently issued guidance that employers who mandate their employees receive the vaccines may be liable if the employee suffers a vaccine injury. This is huge because not even vaccine manufacturers are liable, thanks to a little-known 1986 law.
Click here and read the very short section titled “Employment.”
Give this form (provided by America’s Frontline Doctors) to your employer and ask that it be filled out and returned to you. (The form is also available here.) Go to this link and click “vaccine public letter.” Edit the parts in red and deliver it to your employer.
America’s Frontline Doctors has a form through which you can contact them if you are looking for an attorney in your state to help if your employer is attempting to force you to take the vaccine.
Your employer forcing you to take the vaccine may be illegal if you’re in Florida.
Your university is trying to force you to take the vaccine.
Read this article. Give this form (provided by America’s Frontline Doctors) to your school and ask that it be filled out and returned to you. (That form is also available here.) Go to this link and click “vaccine public letter.” Edit the parts in red and deliver it to your university by certified mail.
Do not let this form and this letter get lost in bureaucracy. Keep records of everything — conversations (learn about if it’s legal to record someone without his knowledge in your state here), emails, signatures from FedEx or the postal service indicating your letter was received. Demand an answer.
America’s Frontline Doctors has a form through which you can contact them if you are looking for an attorney in your state to help if your university is attempting to force you to take the vaccine.
A sample Catholic religious exemption letter can be found via the Children of God for Life website here.
If you are employed by your university (for example, as a Resident Advisor), see the above section about employment. However, most university jobs that are typically available to students are for enrolled students, making this a bit of a Catch-22.
If your school is in Florida, you’re in luck. A new law signed by Gov. DeSantis bans schools from requiring the coronavirus vaccine.
“Neither government, nor private businesses, will be able to condition your participation in everyday life on producing private health information,” DeSantis tweeted upon signing the law.
Your child’s school is mandating coronavirus vaccination as a condition of enrollment.
The coronavirus vaccines are now FDA-authorized — but not fully approved — under Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) for kids aged 12 and up.
Just like when it comes to employment, it seems likely that it’ll be easier to skip, avoid, or not have to worry about the coronavirus vaccine for school enrollment while the COVID-19 vaccines are still considered experimental under the law.
As Children of God for Life explains:
All 50 states allow medical exemptions [to vaccines required for school enrollment], 19 offer philosophical exemptions and only three states — California, West Virginia and Mississippi do not allow religious or philosophical exemptions for children attending school. View State laws governing exemptions.
It is important to understand that as the laws vary from State to State, some are actually unconstitutional as written. In most cases, State officials realize this and do not question a parent filing an exemption since they do not want litigation. However, other officials, such as NY State are notorious for grilling parents in an attempt to determine sincerity and whether or not the belief is actually religious in nature. Still others have attempted to redefine what a particular religion does or does not teach.
If you simply need help with filing a religious exemption you may contact us. Please be sure to let us know your religious denomination and State of residence and we will be glad to assist you. Or for information on Catholic Religious exemptions click here.
Go to this link and click “vaccine public letter.” Edit the parts in red and deliver it to your child’s school by certified mail. Keep records of everything — conversations (learn about if it’s legal to record someone without his knowledge in your state here), emails, signatures from FedEx or the postal service indicating your letter was received.
America’s Frontline Doctors has a form through which you can contact them if you are looking for an attorney in your state to help with a vaccine-related matter.
Unfortunately, you may just have to find a different school for your child. Or, maybe you need to band together with like-minded parents and start your own school, hybrid school, or homeschool co-op.
If your child’s school is in Florida, you’re in luck. A new law signed by Gov. DeSantis bans schools from requiring the coronavirus vaccine…
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