The anti-vaccination billboard that's been likened to 'child abuse'
A billboard discouraging vaccinations has caused an uproar in Perth.
The sign, erected in Northbridge, has been called dangerous and likened to child abuse.
“Do you know what’s in a vaccine?” it reads. It also features a link to a US ‘anti-vaxxer’ group Learn the Risk.
Doctors, politicians and the man who owns the store it’s attached to want it removed.
Australian Medical Association WA vice-president Dr Mark Duncan-Smith accused those behind the billboard of “effectively” trying to abuse children.
Catherine Hughes, who lost her baby Riley to whooping cough in 2015 and is now an immunisation advocate, is also calling for its removal.
“I’d really hate for another parent to go through a similar experience simply because they’ve been scared into not vaccinating,” she said.
Questions are now being asked as to why and how it was allowed to go up – and who approved it.
The owner of the store said he paid to have the sign up, but would have objected if he had known of its exact content.
Getting rid of it will be no easy task either. The City of Vincent said it doesn’t have the power to remove the billboard.
WA Health Minister Roger Cook has asked the health department to see if it can be taken down under public health laws, but he’s unsure if the necessary “safeguards” are in place.
