A Glimpse into My Op-Ed

I think I just finished writing my Op-Ed. I decided to write about Anti-Vaxxers, because the idea of voluntarily not vaccinating one’s children is just so absurd to me. I’ve never really thought of myself as someone who is very interested in something like public health and the medical field in general, but when something like the measles, mumps, rubella, and so many other diseases/infections are so easily preventable, I just can’t believe that some people still think it’s not important to be vaccinated. My grandparents visited me this weekend for the second time this school year, and we had a great time. I mentioned to them that I was going to be writing an Op-Ed piece for my First Year Writing class, and I wanted to write about Anti-Vaxxers. My grandpa said that there was an article about Anti-Vax parents in the newspaper he read that morning. He saved that article for me, and before I began writing, I read the Op-Ed he’d saved for me (also I think it’s pretty coincidental that this assignment is writing an Op-Ed and I read an Op-Ed to help support my argument). The author of the piece has three children and has a fourth on the way, and she homeschools her children. She decided that it was worth it to forgo her income in order to tailor her children’s education to their own needs and give them the attention she thinks is necessary for a worthwhile education. She discovered that in the community of homeschooling parents, not vaccinating children seems to be a norm. She’s done her best to avoid discussing things like this with other parents because she doesn’t want to think about her children being exposed to such easily preventable diseases, but she’s noticed that it comes up pretty organically (in fact, she compared it someone who does CrossFit or eats vegan -- it usually just comes up). As a parent, I can imagine it’s a very scary and uncomfortable feeling to subject your children to interact with children who are not vaccinated when they absolutely could be. It’s human nature to want to protect one’s offspring. When I am a father, I plan to protect my children from as much as I can. It just makes sense for me to vaccinate my kids when I know that there’s no link between vaccines and autism, and even if I’m worried about “putting chemicals in my kids body,” I know that research has proven this to be practical and necessary. I would also never want to plant in my children's’ heads that having autism is a bad thing, but that’s a whole other layer to my argument.

Until I read this article and began writing my Op-Ed, I didn’t realize how passionate I really was about this issue. It’s just so stupid. I really don’t mean to offend anyone reading this blog post or anyone who will read my Op-Ed, but I would just like readers to take my Op-Ed a a wake up call. There’s a right decision to make. If have kids and vaccinate them regularly, I applaud you! I also encourage you to make it your mission to pass along the message. In my opinion, it should be required by all school districts and all afterschool programs (basically anywhere that kids congregate), because there are already so many things to worry about as a parent that aren’t within your control. Vaccinate!!!