GEORGETOWN TOWNSHIP, Mich. — For most of the Jenison Memorial Day parade, those who sat along the route got exactly what they expected: American flags, veterans and a community gathered in memory of the soldiers who didn’t make it home. But one float had onlookers upset, and others upset by the reaction.
Float number 45 in the parade held the group “Michigan for Vaccine Choice.” Pictures posted to Facebook show the group holding signs calling vaccines dangerous, and spreading what health experts agree is misinformation.
“Our township officials dropped the ball," said Carol Tanis, who watched the parade. "They should have had a better oversight as to who was in this parade.”
Tanis was so upset by the float she wrote a letter to the township board, calling the float a "disgrace." The parade itself was not planned by Georgetown Township, but the board did issue a permit to close the street, putting the planning in the hands of a group called Ottawa Impact.
On its website, Ottawa Impact says it is "committed to defending the constitutional rights of parents to make health and education decisions for their own children."
“By handing over the responsibility of who’s in this parade," Tanis says, "[the township is] ultimately responsible for who is in it.”
Though he did not use a township email, Township Clerk Ryan Kidd was listed as the Parade Champion and main contact. 13 ON YOUR SIDE reached out to Kidd, as well as the township supervisor, but did not receive word back.
Michigan for Vaccine Choice responded with this statement:
MVC is a 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to providing educational information about the subject of vaccinations, while protecting and supporting individuals and parents to make vaccine decisions in Michigan.
Our Board of Directors and membership is made up of healthcare professionals, business owners, and parents. We work with the public, our members and the legislature to educate on all issues vaccine related. We support the current Michigan laws, which allow for all 3 types of exemptions from vaccination: Medical, Religious and philosophical. We work diligently with school boards, medical groups, and individuals to navigate exercising your rights to choose if and when you or your family will undergo any medical intervention, including vaccination, without coercion or government overreach.
Marginalizing or dismissing concerns with any medical procedure with name calling “anti vaxxer” is irresponsible at best. This was a term coined by those in the pharmaceutical industry, who want compliance to mandates without the real necessity of informed consent. Informed consent, which is the integral part of making informed decisions for medical interventions, is not occurring as it should. Most American’s are not aware that the Covid-19 vaccinations are not FDA approved, and that they come with a full list of adverse reactions which includes death. These EUA treatments are experimental. People should be aware of that. Additionally, those choosing to undergo any vaccination should be given the lot number, batch number and also made aware that their private health information will be entered into the State registry, MCIR, where they will be tracked for additional vaccines currently in development and boosters. They should also know how to report adverse reactions to VAERS, the Vaccine Adverese Events Reporting System, which tracks injuries and deaths that occur from all vaccinations, including Covid-19 experimental treatment.
Most importantly, people should be aware of our constitutional right to free speech. Memorial Day celebrates the memory and memorialize those that fought for our constitutional rights, giving their lives in the process. These brave men and women who showed up for the parade, taking their holiday weekend to educate their community, are paying homage to our fallen heroes by standing up for their hard fought for freedoms protected under the constitution."
Comments underneath the pictures on Facebook were split, some people upset by the presence of anti-vaccine messaging in the parade, others arguing the group has every right to share their beliefs. For Tanis, it all come’s down to the group being on the street and not the sidewalk.
“If they were standing along the parade route, okay, that’s their choice. But being in the parade, there’s an endorsement there I believe, by allowing them there.”
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