Lethbridge MP offers divisive stance on COVID-19 vaccinations

Many people shared their thoughts on her stance in the comment section of the post, saying she’s providing incorrect information and many are in support of her opinion.

“I’ve had the opportunity to meet with many people from the community of Lethbridge, I’ve read hundreds of emails from constituents who have shared their accounts with me of losing their job, losing their jobs because they are not vaccinated, losing the opportunity to receive education because they’re not vaccinated,” Thomas outlines.

“Ultimately, these people are sharing with me that they’re losing their voice and their credibility. They are losing any sort of respect or appreciation within the community.”

She states that the unvaccinated people in the province are being labeled as the problem or “are the ones that are holding us back from being able to turn or return to normal life.”

Thomas says, “I would plead with you that that’s actually just not true.”

“When we look at the numbers right now, especially with the new variants, we see that the number of people who are coming down with COVID and even being admitted to the hospital, or actually the number of vaccinated, sorry, the number of fully vaccinated is actually greater than the number of those who are not vaccinated.”

However, the latest chart as of 1:17 pm Monday, December 20, from Alberta Health Services tells a different story.

The image below is a screenshot of a chart from AHS, outlining that 61.05% of people currently in the hospital with COVID-19 are unvaccinated. View the chart at AHS here.

Image from AHS

Thomas talked about a few stories from people in the community and how their lives have been affected after choosing to not be vaccinated.

“One teacher has crippling anxiety because of the ongoing effects of the vaccine, and out of that, she’s chosen not to. We used to take seriously people who struggled with anxiety or depression or great amounts of fear. We used to take seriously, you know, mental health. For whatever reason, though, when it comes to being vaccinated or not vaccinated, we’ve allowed it to polarize us and we’ve allowed it to. I would say, bring out the worst in humanity toward these individuals.”

Thomas notes that there are people in the province that cannot be vaccinated due to underlying medical conditions and who also don’t fit under the exemption program.

“I spoke with a business owner who had a heart attack when she was a teenager. Her doctor would recommend that she’s not vaccinated. However, she doesn’t fit neatly the definition of the three reasons why an exemption would be granted, and so it hasn’t been given to her. But if she was to be vaccinated, there’s a good chance that she would lose her life because of underlying medical conditions.”

As many people are taking sides in this vaccination argument in Alberta, Canada, and the world, Thomas hopes that we as humans can understand why a person might choose to be unvaccinated.

“Let’s be in it together. Let’s defend the values and the principles, the beliefs that have always served us well. Freedom. Personal choice. So to those of you who have been written off or mistreated, pushed out, humiliated, vilified, bullied, or abused. It’s not okay. And I want to exercise my voice on your behalf.”

LNN has compiled a full transcript of Thomas’ Facebook live video. You can read her comments in their entirety below:

“Over the last number of weeks, I’ve had the opportunity to meet with many people from the community of Lethbridge, I’ve read hundreds of emails from constituents who have shared their accounts with me of losing their job, losing their jobs because they are not vaccinated, losing opportunity to receive education because they’re not vaccinated. Losing the chance to travel because of their choice to be unvaccinated. Ultimately, these people are sharing with me that they’re losing their voice and their credibility. They are losing any sort of respect or appreciation within the community. Now I know that it’s tempting to look at these individuals as if they are the problem as if they are the ones that are holding us back from being able to turn or return to normal life. But I would plead with you that that’s actually just not true. When we look at the numbers right now, especially with the new variants, we see that the number of people who are coming down with COVID and even being admitted to the hospital, or actually the number of vaccinated, sorry, the number of fully vaccinated is actually greater than the number of those who are not vaccinated. And so it’s just not the case that these are the individuals that are holding us back. And further to that, I would ask that we seek to understand. And so it’s why I feel it is so necessary to share some of those stories with you today because my heart is grieved at what I am seeing. I spoke with and all the other day who has 22 years of service under her belt. She cares deeply for her patients. But she has concerns regarding her personal health and her well-being and good reason for not being vaccinated. I have talked with numerous nurses who have anywhere from 30 to 30 years oh three to 30 years of experience in the field and who again have served selflessly but who have lost their jobs because they’re not vaccinated. I’ve spoken with doctors and police officers and firefighters within our community. I have spoken with persons, with postal workers, and with teachers. One teacher has crippling anxiety because of the ongoing effects of the vaccine, and out of that, she’s chosen not to. We used to take seriously people who struggled with anxiety or depression or great amounts of fear. We used to take seriously, you know, mental health. For whatever reason, though, when it comes to being vaccinated or not vaccinated, we’ve allowed it to polarize us and we’ve allowed it to. I would say, bring out the worst in humanity toward these individuals. We’re no longer willing to lean in and ask questions and understand. Instead, we just slap labels on these folks as if they are the ones to blame. I spoke with a business owner who had a heart attack when she was a teenager. Her doctor would recommend that she’s not vaccinated. However, she doesn’t fit neatly the definition of the three reasons why an exemption would be granted, and so it hasn’t been given to her. But if she was to be vaccinated, there’s a good chance that she would lose her life because of underlying medical conditions. There are good reasons why people have not gone down that road, and I would plead with you to understand that, to show compassion. We have this long-standing practice within our country where we respect freedom and we respect personal choice. And for whatever reason, in the midst of this pandemic, we seem to have forgotten that. I guess I wonder what happened, I wonder why we’re turning our backs on one another, why we’re so quick to devour. I looked up the term demonization the other day, and according to Merriam Dictionary, it says this. It says to portray someone or something as evil or as worthy of contempt or blame, to portray someone or something as evil or as worthy of contempt or blame. That is precisely what is happening with this group of individuals. They’re being demonized. They are being portrayed as evil as if they are deserving of the contempt that we have for them, as if they should be the ones that are blamed or used as the scapegoat for the fact that life isn’t normal right now. In fact, it’s become so acceptable to use vile speech or vitriol language toward these individuals. So much so that actually political leaders, including the prime minister himself, have encouraged that have exemplified that. It’s from those who are choosing not to be vaccinated. So much so that actually political leaders, including the prime minister himself, have encouraged that have exemplified that. It’s wrong. Those who are choosing not to be vaccinated. They’re not trying to perpetuate the virus. They’re not trying to purposely complicate life. They have good reasons. They aren’t trying to be unreasonable. In fact, every single person that I have talked to has said Rachel. I’m more than happy to be tested on a daily basis to make sure I’m not carrying the virus, to make sure that I am not a public health risk. And what I find interesting is actually, if they were tested on a daily basis, they’re actually safer than those who are vaccinated because we know science shows that even if you’re fully vaccinated, you can still carry the virus and you can still transfer it to another individual. Whereas those that would be willing to have a daily rapid test wouldn’t know definitively that they do not have the virus, and therefore they actually are the safest individuals to enter into our police force, to enter into our schools, and our hospitals, and our long term care centers. So why are these individuals, the bad guys? Why isn’t it presented as an acceptable option that you would be able to opt for daily testing? Canada, I going to plead with you. We’re back in a moment. We are so much better than this. So when we say that we’re in this together, what’s needed, that’s truly mean it. Let’s be in it together. Let’s defend the values and the principles, the beliefs that have always served us well. Freedom. Personal choice. So to those of you who have been written off or mistreated, pushed out, humiliated, vilified, bullied, or abused. It’s not OK. And I want to exercise my voice on your behalf. I’m standing with you.”

by LNN Staff

Lethbridge MP offers divisive stance on COVID-19 vaccinations

Our Community