g5000
Diamond Member
- Nov 26, 2011
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There was this pastor in Cambridge, Massachusetts named Henning Jacobson who had a very bad reaction to a vaccine when he was an infant. He had a painful rash for years.
So when, in 1904, the Cambridge board of health mandated that everyone in Cambridge get a smallpox vaccine, Jacobson went into full blown anti-vaxxer mode and refused.
The penalty for not getting the vaccine was $5.00. About $140 in today's funny money.
Jacobson had also strongly urged his son not to get the smallpox vaccine, but there was an employer mandate and so his son got the shot. His son then suffered a painful reaction which kept his arm in a sling for six months.
The Anti-Vaccination Society backed Jacobson's cause all the way to the US Supreme Court.
Like modern day anti-vaxxers, Jacobson argued that vaccines CAUSE disease and he made other dubious claims.
The Court did not allow him to have his "experts" in this spurious bullshit argue before the court.
They ruled 7-2 against Jacobson. This decision was later affirmed by the Supreme Court in 1922, in Zucht v. King.
So when, in 1904, the Cambridge board of health mandated that everyone in Cambridge get a smallpox vaccine, Jacobson went into full blown anti-vaxxer mode and refused.
The penalty for not getting the vaccine was $5.00. About $140 in today's funny money.
Jacobson had also strongly urged his son not to get the smallpox vaccine, but there was an employer mandate and so his son got the shot. His son then suffered a painful reaction which kept his arm in a sling for six months.
The Anti-Vaccination Society backed Jacobson's cause all the way to the US Supreme Court.
Like modern day anti-vaxxers, Jacobson argued that vaccines CAUSE disease and he made other dubious claims.
The Court did not allow him to have his "experts" in this spurious bullshit argue before the court.
They ruled 7-2 against Jacobson. This decision was later affirmed by the Supreme Court in 1922, in Zucht v. King.
Jacobson v. Massachusetts, 197 U.S. 11 (1905)
Jacobson v. Massachusetts: A state may enact a compulsory vaccination law, since the legislature has the discretion to decide whether vaccination is the best way to prevent smallpox and protect public health. The legislature may exempt children from the law without violating the equal protection...
supreme.justia.com