Alex Jones a no-show at former Methodist employees’ anti-vax rally
Yolunda Milton can’t count the number of times she has come into contact with people infected with COVID-19 at her job as a scheduler at Houston Methodist’s Imaging Center.
They would hand her their drivers licenses, forms they’d filled out and pens they touched as they stood just a few feet away to work out appointment specifics. She knew the risks, and despite those, she continued to work every day. But when officials at the hospital system told her that she would have to get a COVID-19 vaccine to stay, that was a risk she was unwilling to take.
“I worked there for 27 years. There were days I would be the first one in and the last one out. I missed family vacations for Methodist, and this is how they treated me,” said Milton, who was fired along with 152 other employees who were either terminated or resigned after they refused to get vaccinated. “How can you have someone force something into your body you don’t want?”
On HoustonChronicle.com: ‘Inappropriate’ or a relief? How Houston Methodist patients, workers feel about vaccination firings
Milton joined more than 100 people gathered outside Houston Methodist Hospital late Saturday morning to voice their displeasure again with the system’s policy that employees must get vaccinated against COVID-19 or be fired from their jobs.
While noted conspiracy theorist Alex Jones was rumored to make an appearance at the rally along Fannin Avenue, the Austin-based provocateur did not show. Instead, local speakers, including some physicians, railed against the hospital’s policy and raised questions about the vaccines.
Methodist officials told employees in April that they must get one of the three available COVID-19 vaccines in order to keep their jobs, setting off a contentious few weeks of protests and a lawsuit filed by employees to fight the policy. That lawsuit was dismissed by a judge earlier this month, and Methodist finalized the firings of 153 of its 25,000 employees on Tuesday.
In an April letter, Houston Methodist Chief Physician Executive Dr. Rob Phillips wrote that the move was necessary to move forward on the fight against COVID.
“I know we can count on you to help protect our patients and the community,” he wrote. “It is our duty as health care professionals to do no harm and protect the safety of all of us — our colleagues, our patients and our society.”
Those gathered in front of the hospital Saturday, however, questioned whether the vaccine would do more harm than good in the long run.
On HoustonChronicle.com: Unvaccinated Houston Methodist employees appeal judge’s ruling on COVID vaccine mandate
Jose Casores, a 32-year-old from the northside, said he felt the vaccine was rushed out and not enough is known about the long-term implications or side effects. He worried Methodist would become the first of many to mandate the shots for employees.
“It shows corporations will mandate the vaccine for Americans,” he said. “People have the right to get vaccinated, we should have the right to not get vaccinated. We should have the right to choose.”
Connie Perkins, a 39-year-old retired veteran from League City, agreed. She said when she was in the military, doctors over-prescribed her painkillers for back pain and she felt compelled to take them, leading to years of harsh side effects. She’s off them now, but said other’s should be given a mandate to take vaccines or drugs they’re not comfortable with.
“I’m not an anti-vaxxer — I’ve been vaccinated up to this point,” Perkins said. “There’s just not enough research.”
Much of the rally, however, was political in nature, with speakers and signs lambasting Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, and the Biden Administration.
Danita Bratton, Yolunda Milton’s sister, said she didn’t agree with most of the political messaging but said the choice on whether to get vaccinated should lie with individuals — not their employers.
“It shouldn’t be about politics,” she said. “I have family members that have taken it, and I have nothing against that. I just don’t feel you should be made to take it.”
shelby.webb@chron.com
More coronavirus news
*** This article has been archived for your research. The original version from Houston Chronicle can be found here ***
