All throughout the United States, cities and companies are implementing their very own vaccine mandates. This means that in order to have certain privileges, they must get the shot against COVID-19. ESPN is one of the corporations implementing such a mandate as they have noted that any full-time employee who refuses to get the vaccine, will ultimately lose their job.
One of their college football and basketball reporters Allison Williams is now taking a stand against this mandate. In a video posted to Instagram, the reporter claims she is now leaving ESPN as she can not morally support a mandate. She also said she is trying to get pregnant which has her wary of getting the shot, despite the fact that the vaccine has, indeed, been deemed safe for those trying to have children.
Michael Loccisano/Getty Images fro Unbridled Eve
"I am also so morally and ethically not aligned with this and I've had to really dig deep and analyze my values and my morals, and ultimately I have to put them first," Williams said. "I cannot put a paycheck over principle. I will not sacrifice something that I believe and hold so strongly to maintain a career. I weighed that and I thought about implications. We all want to be good neighbors. We all want to end this pandemic. But ultimately, an injection that does not stop transmission and spread, for me, did not weigh in morally."
This is a trend we are likely to see more of over the coming weeks, especially as it pertains to professional sports. Guys like Kyrie Irving are currently ineligible to play due to vaccine hesitancy, and it's something that could progress even more as an increasing number of mandates are implemented across the country.
[Via]