Vaccines and the ethics of appropriating the yellow star

Ruth Balint and Jan Láníček: Comparisons between state-sponsored genocide and public health measures are odious; vaccination is a matter of choice, Jews did not have that liberty

AUSTRALIA’S TWO MOST populous states, New South Wales and Victoria, continue to face severe restrictions in an effort to contain the spread of the Delta variant of COVID-19.

Long lockdowns and growing calls for the compulsory vaccination of health care professionals, members of the police force, those who work in hospitality, and other professions, have triggered a degree of alarm among some elements of society who do not want to or cannot be vaccinated.

Such measures, they insist, needlessly curtail individual liberties — including access to the job market.

Over the last few months, people have turned out in force to protest publicly against the lockdowns and compulsory COVID-19 vaccinations. Some of these protests have turned violent. Protesters regularly invoke the word “freedom” to convey their message, believing that COVID-related restrictions and the coercion to be vaccinated violate their human rights. Some have turned to history to make their case.

One of the most common historical references that has been visible among the crowds is the Holocaust, with protesters comparing themselves to Jews persecuted under the Nazis. During the recent protest in front of the Queensland parliament house in Brisbane, for example, several peaceful demonstrators donned yellow stars of David, with the inscriptions “I want to live in a free country” and “Freedom in Australia”.

This is not the first time in Australia that those opposing the current restrictions have compared our situation with Jewish life in Nazi Germany. In September 2020, during Sydney’s second lockdown, the then Liberal backbencher Craig Kelly posted on Facebook, “No it’s not Nazi Germany, it’s happening in Australia in 2020.” Kelly later apologised for making the analogy.

FULL STORY COVID-19, vaccines, and the ethics of the appropriation of Jewish persecution (ABC)