Young Japanese Duped Into Attending Anti-Vax Rally

An anti-vax rally drew an impressive crowd this weekend in Tokyo. However, it turns out that’s only because people thought they’d be paid.

Picture: Canva

By Jay Andrew Allen

An anti-vax organization held what turned out to be a big rally this weekend in Tokyo. However, it turns out that many of the young people who showed up were only there because they thought they’d get paid. How did a viral post dupe so many people into attending a right-wing, anti-science rally?

The anti-vax movement in Japan

Hiratsuka Masayuki campaigned for governor of Chiba on the slogan that “COVID is the common cold” and said that masking and social distancing were unnecessary.

Historically, there hasn’t been a strong anti-vax movement in Japan. Quite the contrary — even the samurai in the late Edo period embraced the smallpox vaccine, setting up vaccination centers across the country.

There have been exceptions, of course, particularly among religious groups. The Religion for Salvation in Mie Prefecture, for example, used to instruct its members to avoid vaccination. However, the group ended up apologizing and backtracking after its members helped spread an outbreak of measles.