Vaccine Mandate Exemption Sends Mixed Messages In New York
The Mayor of New York City has declared that athletes and entertainers are immediately exempt from vaccine mandates.
As of this morning, if you were an employee in the private sector in New York City and you want to work there, you had to be vaccinated. That changed for athletes and performers after an announcement from the mayor this morning.
The announcement from Mayor Eric Adams will make athletes and entertainers exempt from the vaccine mandate while they're performing in New York City. Now, if you're against mandates, hold on before you get too excited. He's not doing away with it for everyone...just the athletes and entertainers. Everyone else still has to abide by the mandates.
Obviously, people were outraged immediately. Why should only some people have to be vaccinated and others get a pass? Why are they exempt?
To say it differently, an athlete who makes millions can now play in a building if they are vaccinated or not...but the person that cleans that building or maintains it cannot unless they're vaccinated.
He said that the move was one of economic necessity and added that he knew it was going to be a controversial change but acknowledged that he was going to have to make some "tough" decisions while he is the mayor.
"I'm mayor of the city and I'm going to make some tough choices. People are not going to agree with some of them. I was not elected to follow. I was not elected to be fearful but to be fearless. I must move this city forward." - NYC Mayor Eric Adams
The vaccine is a ridiculously polarizing subject. There are some that don't believe in it at all. There are some that do. There are some that believe in it but also believe that it should be everyone's personal choice to get it or not.
Regardless of how you feel about the vaccine, this is a huge misstep. It sends mixed messages to everyone. If you're going to mandate something, then it should be for all. Some people have had to make drastic choices about their livelihood over this subject based on what they believe to be true. It's a huge example of why many haven't trusted our political leaders since this whole thing started. It's reasonable to believe that science changes. But this isn't anything to do with science. This is a politician choosing based on their own personal beliefs. You can't pick and choose who has to be vaccinated and give exemption to someone else so that they can play a game. You're going to do away with the mandate? Then do away with it altogether.