My stance on vaccine hesitancy

It has taken me a while to formulate a stance on this. Thankfully, social distancing has meant that I haven't run into any situations where not having a well thought out stance has caused any issues.

And here it is: if you don't want or choose not to get vaccinated that is your decision. I don't expect you to justify yourself. I won't preach to you or badger you.

But, there are some simple stipulations which come along for the ride:

• Don't bother justifying your reasons. 
• While I respect your decision to do what you will with your own body, I don't need to (and won't) tolerate arguments which aren't based in sound science or fact.
• Don't complain about public health measures. 
• If every eligible Canadian got a vaccine, the vaccination rate would be pushing 90% even without the under 12 age group. This should be enough, or darn close to enough for "herd-immunity". In short, now that supply is sufficient to fully vaccinate every eligible Canadian, public health measures only exist because of people who willfully choose not to be vaccinated. It is like setting your neighbor's house on fire and then complaining about how hot it is out.
• Don't complain about discrimination.
• You have a right control what you do with your body. But, you also need to accept that your decisions have consequences.
• In this instance, a decision not to be vaccinated puts you at a vastly increased risk of hospitalizing or killing someone else.
• If you want an analogy, this is akin to being forced to disclose if you are HIV positive before putting someone at risk. 
• In short, while you have a right to control what you do with your body, others have a right to know (if you're in a public space, or you are going into their private space) if you pose an out-sized risk to them or those around them. And they have the right to react (within reason) to the answer you give.
• I won't ask you your vaccination status unless the answer will impact my decision making.
• This is equally important to any of the above point. If you're asking just to shame someone or to provoke them, then you're only making the situation worse.

I don't believe that any of these statements are unreasonable.

What does it look like in practice?

Being that I am fully vaccinated and less concerned about the risk to myself at this stage, I probably won't ask anyone else their status in most situations. Though, my daughter is too young to get vaccinated, so, in a crowded indoor setting where she is present I suppose that it is possible that I might either attempt to locate safer activities or ask. 

If I should ask and hear back that someone is not vaccinated then I'll probably choose to leave.

And don't get me wrong. I understand the anger toward those who choose not to get vaccinated. But, for many, this may feel like one of the few freedoms they have left. And, I do believe that it is important to protect these freedoms. Even when we disagree with the reasons people might have for making those choices.

We have to live with restriction longer because of it. But, they have to live with both the restrictions and any additional discrimination they might receive because of that status. So, I don't think that they are making this decision lightly. And attacking them is more likely to backfire than to change minds.