A pointed statement from the White House toward unvaccinated Americans has drawn reactions over its directness in speaking to people who have not had their shots, as well as criticism from those who felt the message was poorly conceived.
In a virtual press conference broadcast by the White House on Friday, COVID-19 Response Coordinator Jeff Zients spoke frankly to Americans who, more than a year after COVID-19 vaccines became available, have not gotten the shots.
“For the unvaccinated,” Zients said, “you’re looking at a winter of severe illness and death for yourselves, your families, and the hospitals you may soon overwhelm.”
Olivia Nuzzi, a Washington, D.C. reporter for New York Magazine, was among those questioning the strategy of the statement.
“Who is this for?” she asked. “Unvaccinated Americans are not going to be persuaded by messaging like this.”
But others disagreed, saying that at a time when COVID cases are surging toward what could be their highest point in the last year, the directness from authorities was necessary.
“The truth is the truth,” White House Chief of Staff Ronald Klain said in a tweet. In response to a question of whether the messaging would be backed by policy changes or increased vaccine mandates, he later added: “It’s not about being mad — just the opposite. It’s that — whether people like the warnings or not — we have a duty to warn people what they are facing if unvaccinated.”
72% of the United States population is at least partially vaccinated, and more than 60% is fully vaccinated, according to The New York Times. With 74% of the state fully vaccinated, Massachusetts is among the most inoculated locations in the country.
Some people suggested that, for the more than quarter of the country yet to get a single COVID shot, the prospect of encountering the virus is not worrying.
Some people criticized the message tone deaf, given the many people not yet eligible to the get the shots or not medically able to do so.
Other critics were quick to point out the darker tone of the White House statement. Among them was actor Rob Schneider, who quoted a joke article by a conservative satirical news site, The Babylon Bee.
But in contrast to the many people disagreeing with the White House, others pushed back, claiming the section of the statement was taken out of context.
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