Newspaper battles vaccine myths among Mennonites

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This article was published 12/08/2021 (1877 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

OPPOSITION to COVID-19 vaccinations may be high among some Low German-speaking Mennonites in Manitoba, but Kennert Giesbrecht is trying to change that.

Giesbrecht, 56, is editor of Die Mennonitische Post, a German-language newspaper that serves conservative Mennonites in Canada, the U.S., Mexico and countries in South and Central America.

Known as Kanadier (Canadian) Mennonites, these people are descendants of those who left Canada for Mexico and Paraguay in the 1920s when the governments of Manitoba and Saskatchewan went back on their promise to let them run their own schools.

They retain Canadian citizenship, allowing them to move between Canada and other countries such as Mexico, Paraguay, Bolivia and Belize.

In Canada, they can be mostly found in southern Manitoba and parts of Alberta and southwestern Ontario. Giesbrecht estimates there are as many as 100,000 in the country.

“There is so much false information out there,” he said of why so many Low German speaking Mennonites are against getting vaccinated.

Most of the misinformation they get comes from social media, Giesbrecht said, noting the Post “tries to be a reliable source of information” about the pandemic for its 12,000 subscribers.

“Lots of people don’t consider my information accurate,” Giesbrecht, who was born in Paraguay and has been editor of the Post for 20 years, said. “They see my newspaper as fake news.”

As for why these Kanadier Mennonites resist being vaccinated, he cites a historically mistrust in governments.

When they hear the government telling people to get vaccinated, “they feel threatened,” Giesbrecht said, adding they see it as the first step in more government-imposed sanctions.

The fact that Canada has been more restrictive than other countries such as the U.S. on gatherings for church services also plays into their fears, Giesbrecht said.

“It’s splitting families apart, with the unvaccinated breaking off contact with fully vaccinated people,” Giesbrecht said. “When some people get the vaccine, they don’t tell anyone.”

The pandemic is also hitting some Mennonite Low German-speaking colonies in Paraguay, Belize, Mexico and Bolivia hard, he said.

Giesbrecht said he has heard of one colony where eight adults in one extended family died. In another family, the husband, two sons and an uncle all died in one week.

The tragedy has touched Giesbrecht with two uncles and three cousins in Paraguay having died of the virus.

“My sense is the colonies are being hit hard,” he said. “They agree it is a serious illness, but they’re not willing to get vaccinated, stop gathering or practise social distancing.”

Clergy in the colonies could make a difference, but many feel pressure not to promote vaccines, Giesbrecht said.

“I heard of one colony that voted out its minister because he was pro-vaccination,” he said, adding some are fearful of losing members to other anti-vax churches.

The pandemic is also taking a devastating toll on clergy, who are expected to visit those sick with the virus. “Lots of ministers in some colonies have passed away,” Giesbrecht said.

Giesbrecht said he knows the virus is taking a toll based on the rise in the number of obituaries in the paper.

“We usually have 500 to 600 a year, but we had over 1,000 last year,” he said, noting most don’t mention COVID-19 but say the cause of death was a lung infection.

The newspaper is on pace for a similar number of obituaries this year, he added.

Despite opposition and some cancelled subscriptions, Giesbrecht doesn’t plan to stop promoting vaccinations.

“I tell them to check their sources of information; don’t always believe what is being shared on social media,” he said. “My mission is to share accurate information.”

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