Dear New Jersey Senators, It’s Our Civil Rights

New Jersey: click here to send a version of this letter to your state senator and Senate President Sweeney

Dear New Jersey Senators,

Thank you for your commitment to representative democracy. I am writing about S2173, which will eliminate the right to decline mandatory vaccines due to deeply held religious beliefs. As you saw on Monday in Trenton, and as you have experienced with the 80,000+ pieces of correspondence sent to your offices over the past two weeks about this bill, I am not alone in my unequivocal opposition to this bill.

If you are one of the 20+ Senators who telegraphed the intention to vote no to S2173, please hold firm and work with us to reach your peers. Tell me how you’d like to work with us. Know that we are here, more committed than ever, and will find the most important ways to express our undying gratitude, now and in the next election.

If you are wavering or intend to vote yes on S2173, the rest of this letter is for you.

It is time for all reasonable men and women in the New Jersey Senate to call for a pause. Tensions are extremely high. The People did not ask for S2173 and we do not want it. Do not bulldoze us. We want a democratic process that allows for explanation, discussion, negotiation, and compromise.

The massive, fierce, and sustained public outcry you witnessed was among “the largest, longest, and loudest in Statehouse history.” It is neither casual nor capricious. It is only controversial to those who have not yet taken time to understand why. And, as legislators across the country are discovering, it is not fringe. Because of extraordinary and accelerating government overreach, this is emerging as one of the most important civil rights issues of our time. Allow me and Encyclopedia Britannica to explain:

Civil rights protect people’s freedoms from infringement by government. They cover our participation in society and are guarantees of equal opportunities, protection against discrimination, and equal protection under the law for all. They include the ensuring of life and safety, privacy, freedom of religion, thought, speech, and press. Unlike human or natural rights, civil rights are granted and guaranteed by the state. When these rights are transgressed, a civil rights movement may emerge. [emphasis mine]

We are a civil rights movement. This issue crosses gender, race, color, age, political affiliation, ethnicity, religion, disability, and socioeconomic status. We are appealing to you, our elected representatives, for the opportunity to work with you, so you can represent us. If S2173 passes, it will infringe on civil rights. Its enforcement will result in discrimination and unequal protection under the law. And it will be unjust.

How can you disagree when you have not paused to listen, to ask questions, and to understand?

Will the soulful regret of this California senator’s decision to co-sponsor a similar bill pierce your firm conviction?

Imagine for a moment what we see. In a fair process, this bill would never have left health committee. Three committee members, voting no because of our hard work, were reseated to wrangle a 6-4 vote. Legislators are being strong-armed. This bill is moving right now, so close to sacred holidays, when it is hardest for parents to be activating and traveling to Trenton, when we should instead be decking the halls and wrapping our families in love. What you have seen and heard from us is no small measure of our determination and our true numbers.

The political maneuvering to force S2173 through is corrupt and wrong. There must be room for explanation and discussion. These are fundamental rights. They must not be restricted without demonstrating compelling state interest and giving deep consideration of all the impacts, with a thorough examination of the evidence from multiple sources. Will you call for Senators on both sides of the aisle to sponsor a responsible process through which stakeholders and experts may participate?

You may remember December 16th as a very long day. We will, too. Six thousand parents stood in freezing, sleeting weather for over ten hours. If you think it was an arduous but necessary step in a process that’s coming to an end, you would be wrong. There are many, many thousands more watching closely who are activated and rising.

We do not rise because we are ignorant or spoiled. We rise because we see the crooked places that must be made straight.

There are grave injustices that are occurring, made invisible by power, privilege, and ambition. If you do not listen today, ever greater numbers will appear on your doorstep tomorrow. Please understand, this is no small thing. It is about who we are — how we worship, how we raise and educate our families, and how we keep our bodies healthy, clean, and holy.

Like you, we are concerned about measles. However, a serious issue will never justify a wrong-headed solution. You will not meet a more educated movement on our issue. As you prepare to do your job regarding S2173, we are doing ours. We are alerting you to a bad bill and we are holding you accountable. We want to make sure that the actions taken are strictly necessary, non-discriminatory, the least restrictive, and above all, will impact measles. It makes sense to protect the public health. It does not make sense to take something away from us that will not work.

As with many important things that cannot be distilled into a soundbite, the devil is in the details. This original expression comes from a German saying that God (and the truth) is in the detail. No truer words, in more ways than one.

If you were in office in June of this year, you received from your constituents a 65 page policy briefing report on measles vaccine and measles infection. It is a comprehensive review of the scientific literature with 250+ peer-reviewed and establishment sources. It reveals the multi-factorial causes of measles outbreaks, related in largest part to primary and secondary vaccine failure. This information is documented and undisputed in scientific literature.

Before you consider removing our rights in order to address measles in our communities, we want assurances that the points raised in this report will be addressed.