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The modern anti-vax movement started in the UK with Andrew Wakefield, I wouldn’t be quick to square the bulk of the blame with the US.
It’s a global phenomenon of the gullable, the willfully ignorany, and the vulnerable (usually through personal loss or trauma) - and the fraudsters who wish to take advantage of them.
Wakefield wasn’t antivax? He’s made two anti-vax movies now, the most recent anti-mumphs vaccine one ‘Prorocol-7’ in 2024. He’s now lived in Texas for over a decade and is paid by various antivax groups as a speaker and advisor, reportedly as his primary income. He’s been involved in multiple attempts to kerb mandatory vaccinations for school enrollment.
His message didn’t get garbled - he’s the one right there telling it!