ANSONIA, Conn. (AP) — A Connecticut town is coming under fire from parents after it scheduled a free comedy basketball show that is restricted to vaccinated children.
The Feb. 6 show in Ansonia features the Harlem Wizards, a professional touring team in the tradition of the Harlem Globetrotters. The show is being sponsored by Griffin Health, a Derby-based health care provider, to thank the city for its efforts to boost vaccine rates.
City officials weren’t backing down in limiting the event to vaccinated children.
“Safety is paramount in this administration here in Ansonia. I want to make sure everybody has their vaccination. This is what Griffin Hospital requires and the Wizard organization requires and I’m fine with that,” Mayor David Cassetti told the New Haven Register.
The newspaper reported about only about 15% of children aged 5 to 11 in Ansonia were fully vaccinated as of last week.
Some parents objected to the fact that schools handed out flyers for the show and raised kids’ hopes, without letting parents know ahead of time about the vaccine requirement.
“My only issue with this event was how they’re promoting it,” Gina Rummo Diaz, a mother of two who said said she is vaccinated and working to get her kids vaccinated, told the newspaper. “They handed it out in school to children. And the children are excited to attend these events. And then they come home and mom says ’Sorry, you can’t go you’re not vaccinated.’”
Patrick Charmel, president and CEO of Griffin Health, told the Register it was done purposely to create an incentive for children to push their parents to get them vaccinated.
“Hopefully they’ll say to the parents, ‘I really want to go, please, can I get vaccinated,’” he said.
(Copyright (c) 2024 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)