UPDATED: 5:40 p.m. ET, Dec. 1, 2021Originally published: Aug. 30, 2021Call it déjà vu all over again.
In yet the latest example that it would behoove folks to get vaccinated against COVID-19, the founder of the largest Christian television TV channel who just happens to be anti-vaccine has died of the coronavirus.
Marcus Lamb, a Christian evangelist who founded and was the president of Daystar Television Network, died Tuesday, the network announced in a tweet.
In an example of the stance embraced by Lamb, Daystar said in a court filing that a vaccine mandate was a “sin against God’s Holy Word.”
Instead of the vaccine, Lamb prior to his death treated his condition with ivermectin, according to Newsweek. Notably, the FDA warned against using ivermectin — medicine used to treat animals — by reminding people in a tweet from August, “You are not a horse. You are not a cow.”
Meanwhile, anti-vaxxers with a platform who have protested against or tried to discredit the COVID-19 vaccine have been steadily dying from the virus. For months, right-wing talk show hosts and some celebrities alike have all railed against the vaccine and as a result, many of their listeners also didn’t get vaccinated. Now, some of those same conservative mouthpieces are dying from COVID-19, heightening concerns that even those deaths won’t be enough to change skeptics’ minds about the vaccine.
As the new Omicron variant joins the delta variant and other mutating versions of the virus infect more Americans, cases are seemingly on the rise and there are fears that hospitals once again could become overwhelmed. COVID-19 deaths were also on the rise over the summer, up 355% since early July, according to the Centers for Disease Control. Unvaccinated people are also 29 times more likely to be hospitalized and five times more likely to be infected by the virus.
Although vaccinations have been around for over two centuries, the spread of misinformation has made it difficult for people to understand the truth. As the internet becomes the dominant place for people to get information, fake news spreads, which leads to mistrust. During times of crisis, many people turn to the information and the people they are comfortable with and facts become less important.
Anti-vaxxers find online communities that strengthen their viewpoint instead of presenting clear and precise answers to questions many people have about the vaccination. In these communities, opinion and general statements turn into solid facts. They are harder on their viewpoint and it becomes impossible to change their minds. They begin to think they are right and everyone else is wrong, which causes them to search for more information that supports their own views. In doing this it becomes easy to draw conclusions from not only a lack of evidence but also incorrect evidence. It takes very little research on the internet to find people who say COVID vaccines are harmful. Many times anti-vaxxers take statements out of context and misinterpret data all together causing even more confusion.
You do not get a second chance at life and sadly these anti-vaxxers won’t get the opportunity to fix their mistakes.
Keep reading to find a list of notable anti-vaxxers who have died from COVID-19.
About a month before his death, Enyart wrote on his website that he and his wife “have sworn off taking the Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson vaccines because, as those firms admit, they tested these three products on the cells of aborted babies.”
He said he was waiting for “vaccines being developed morally” and lamented none of them would be available anytime soon.
Marc Bernier was a conservative, right-wing radio host in Florida who dubbed himself “Mr. Anti-Vax.” He regularly protested against the vaccine as was not vaccinated. He died August 30, 2020.
3. Phil Valentine
Phil Valentine was a conservative talk show host who died August 21, 2021 from COVID-19 after expressing skepticism about the vaccine. He had also not been vaccinated.
4. Dick Farrel
Dick Farrel was a conservative talk show host from Florida. He was an avid Trump supporter who changed his mind about the vaccine after her fell sick from the virus, but it was too late. He died after a two-week battle on August 4, 2021
5. Tod Tucker
Tod Tucker was a conservative talk show host from Oklahoma City, OK. He did August 11, 2021, after an onset of viral pneumonia as the result of COVID-19
6. Dr. Jimmy DeYoung Sr.
Dr. Jimmy DeYoung Sr. was a Christian radio host and Bible Prophecy Teacher. DeYoung, who died August 15, 2021, once called the vaccine “government control,” and was not vaccinated.
7. Caleb Wallace
Caleb Wallace was the Founder of the “The San Angelo Freedom Defenders” anti-mask group and he organized anti-mask rallies. He died August 28, 2021. He had been unconscious and on a ventilator for weeks before he died.
8. Herman Cain
Source: Getty
Herman Cain was American businessman and activist for the Tea Party movement. He was an active Trump supporter who unfortunately didn’t live long enough to become a true anti-vaxxer. Before he died he vocally opposed to masks and stay at home orders. He died July 30, 2020 from COVID-19.
