Violence or the Threat of Violence against those who believe in choice

For many months now, I have been receiving phone calls and emails threatening violence against myself personally due to my stance on informed vaccination choice. In the previous 17 years since starting the AVN, this had never happened. It is only since the emergence of publicity associated with the HCCC complaint and the rise of SAVN (Stop the Australian Vaccination Network) that these sorts of threats have begun. Over the last few weeks, they have become an almost daily 'event'.

I thought that it might be time to share with you some of the emails, tweets and Facebook posts which I have been subjected to in recent times. If you compare the comments on AVN with those on SAVN, it is easy to see that while we are being threatened, the SAVN receives only rational comments.

This was the first threat I received though I had started to receive threatening calls late at night before that in November 2009:

I contacted the police about this and they sent two officers to my home who basically said that it would be almost impossible to trace who this was from (somehow, the managed to send this anonymously through Facebook). I also reported it to Facebook and they never got back to me. Glad to see that these things are taken so seriously - NOT!

What follows is a small selection of the other threats that have been sent. Those who have participated in this and the others who condone this treatment should truly be ashamed of themselves.

Below, just in case anyone might suffer under the misapprehension that SAVN condones violence (HEAVEN FORBID!) we have a cautionary word from one of the long-time members.

The following is from Christine Bayne - otherwise known as fuzztwin. She has a penchant for foul language so please excuse this being here on our blog...

And it isn't just me that cops this - the above screen shots are just a few of many, many examples. Below is a post in response to a woman in the US having the unmitigated gall to ask for her child to be excused from compulsory vaccinations due to religious reasons.

So when the media take these people seriously and believe their ridiculous assertions about the AVN believing in all sorts of strange conspiracy theories, perhaps they should have a squizz at the SAVN Facebook page to see some REAL weirdness and some people who seem to think that foul language and threats is the way to get their point across.