{"id":64437,"date":"2020-07-27T09:59:54","date_gmt":"2020-07-27T13:59:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mileniostadium.com\/?p=64437"},"modified":"2020-07-27T10:00:16","modified_gmt":"2020-07-27T14:00:16","slug":"anti-masking-groups-draw-from-anti-vaccination-playbook-to-spread-misinformation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mileniostadium.com\/canada\/anti-masking-groups-draw-from-anti-vaccination-playbook-to-spread-misinformation\/","title":{"rendered":"Anti-masking groups draw from anti-vaccination playbook to spread misinformation"},"content":{"rendered":"

Downplaying dangers of COVID-19, taking research out of context are common strategies, experts say.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Anti-masking
A woman holds a sign at an anti-mask rally in Toronto on July 25. Messages decrying both mandatory masks and vaccines are common at such protests. Canadian public health officials have never suggested that it would be mandatory to be immunized against COVID-19 if a vaccine was successfully developed. (Michael Cole\/CBC)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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As more regions across the country adopt mandatory masking policies in an effort to minimize the spread of COVID-19, some anti-masking groups are joining forces with anti-vaccination proponents and adopting their techniques to spread misinformation and amplify their message.<\/p>\n

The similarities between organized anti-masking and anti-vaccine movements are striking, said Maya Goldenberg, an associate professor of philosophy at the University of Guelph specializing in vaccine hesitancy.<\/p>\n

At least one anti-masking group, Hugs Over Masks, actively partners with Vaccine Choice Canada, one of the country’s most prominent anti-vaccination organizations.<\/p>\n

Vladislav Sobolev, the anti-masking group’s founder, has repeatedly praised the anti-vaccination group on social media and during protests.<\/p>\n

Sobolev also told CBC News that high-profile U.S. anti-vaccination advocate Sherri Tenpenny, an osteopath who wrote Saying No To Vaccines<\/em>, is providing online leadership training to his group.<\/p>\n

Tenpenny, along with other anti-vaccination advocates in the U.S. and Canada, have embraced the anti-masking cause and opposed COVID-19 lockdown measures.<\/p>\n

Although many Canadians who don’t want to wear masks aren’t opposed to vaccines, the fact that anti-vaccination groups are involved in the relatively new anti-masking movement is concerning to many health experts.<\/p>\n

Despite well-established evidence that vaccines are safe and effective, anti-vaccination groups have become savvy at spreading misinformation that leads people to distrust medical guidance\u00a0 \u2014 something that can have dire consequences during a pandemic.<\/p>\n

‘Harmful outcomes’<\/h2>\n

“It disturbs me when I see people acting on information that I’m quite sure is not only incorrect, but potentially misleading and potentially leading to harmful outcomes,” said Dr. Matthew Oughton, an infectious disease specialist at McGill University.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Anti-masking
As people have emerged from COVID-19 isolation in their homes, the city of Toronto has implemented mandatory masking policies for indoor spaces, including stores, where physical distancing is difficult. (Evan Mitsui\/CBC)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

As a practising physician at Montreal’s Jewish General Hospital, Oughton has seen first-hand the toll COVID-19 takes.\u00a0Close to 9,000 people \u2014 largely seniors and people with underlying medical conditions \u2014 have died in Canada from the virus.<\/p>\n

Although scientists are continuing to learn about the novel coronavirus, it appears that people with COVID-19 can be most infectious before they show any symptoms, Oughton said.<\/p>\n

That’s different from many other viruses \u2014 including the first version of SARS. It’s a\u00a0key reason why it’s important for people to wear masks \u2014 even if they feel perfectly healthy\u00a0\u2014 when physical distancing isn’t possible to prevent transmission, medical experts say.<\/p>\n

Mistrust of health authorities fuels misinformation\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Mistrust of government and scientific authorities are key characteristics among both anti-vaccination and anti-masking advocates, Goldenberg said.<\/p>\n

“When you don’t trust the sort of basic infrastructure that’s supposed to support public well being, you’re going to come up with all kinds of tactics to try to resist it,” she told CBC News.\u00a0 Those tactics include the “downplaying of how bad the infectious disease is,” Goldenberg said.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Anti-masking
Mistrust of government and scientific authorities is a key characteristic among both anti-vaccination and anti-masking advocates, says Maya Goldenberg, a University of Guelph expert in vaccine hesitancy. (University of Guelph)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

Before COVID-19, anti-vaccination groups were making false claims that measles\u00a0 \u2014 a serious, vaccine-preventable disease\u00a0 \u2014 wasn’t a major threat.\u00a0 A consequence of that misinformation was an increase in vaccine hesitancy, leading to a resurgence of measles cases in Canada, where it had been declared eliminated in the late 1990s.<\/p>\n

Similarly, during the COVID-19 pandemic, anti-vaccination and anti-masking groups have claimed that coronavirus isn’t any more dangerous than other diseases, such as the flu.\u00a0This is part of an effort to falsely convince people that public health measures to stop the spread of infection\u00a0\u2014\u00a0 from the development of a vaccine to physical distancing and wearing a mask \u2014 are unnecessary.<\/p>\n

Many social media posts from both anti-masking and anti-vaccination groups call the pandemic a conspiracy, citing beliefs that it’s been manufactured to give governments the ability to monitor people through contact tracing and to promote a vaccine agenda. Both groups often target Bill Gates, whose foundation has donated hundreds of millions of dollars to support immunizations globally.\u00a0 When asked if Hugs Over Masks opposes vaccination, Sobolev did not answer directly.<\/p>\n

“The right for an individual to have the choice on any medical intervention set forth by the public health departments is especially important when there are undeniable and inherent risks associated with the intervention in question,” he said in an emailed response. “Health Freedom is not something that should be even in question.”<\/p>\n