Demonstrators marched from the Washington Monument to the Lincoln Memorial where a rally opposing COVID-19 vaccination mandates was held Sunday.
Organizers of “Defeat the Mandates” said they do not oppose vaccines, just forcing people to get vaccinated.
“We’re pretty concerned about what’s going on,” a demonstrator from Ohio told News4. “We came in from out of town and tried to get a burger last night and we got turned away because we didn’t have a proof of vaccination card, and I think that things are going in a pretty scary direction for the community. That’s the first time we had to deal with anything quite like it. All I know is that if I don’t try to do something, I think later on in my life I’d probably be regretting not having stand up and do something.”
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Although the opposition to the mandate was a common theme, the demonstrators appeared to approach it from different perspectives.
"I'm here to promote the freedom to put whatever any American wants to put into their body, and not be mandated to do so," a man said.
It's a conviction held so strongly, it cost some of the demonstrators their livelihoods.
"I live in New Jersey, so they just said jab or job," one woman said.
Not many masks could be seen among the crowd and there were few who claimed to be vaccinated.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was among the speakers at the Lincoln Memorial for the event, which was issued a permit for up to 20,000 attendees.
Washington, D.C., began requiring proof of vaccination against COVID-19 to visit establishments including restaurants, gyms, music venues and theaters on Jan. 15.
Back in December, one journalist asked Mayor Muriel Bowser if she was concerned about government overreach and “Big Brother intruding on your life" when Bowser first announced the mandate.
“I don’t make any of these decisions lightly, because I don’t want Big Brother intruding on my life,” the mayor replied. “I like to make my own decisions. But I also recognize that when you’re responding to a global pandemic, that is the exact time when the government needs to make some decisions for the whole society.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) maintain that "COVID-19 vaccines are highly effective at preventing severe illness, hospitalizations, and death," and they keep a list of common myths about the shot on their website.
