Photos from a 1969 episode of The Brady Bunch are being circulated by anti-vaxxers to downplay the measles outbreak in the US and Maureen McCormick, AKA Marcia Brady, isn’t happy about it.
The actress spoke to NPR about how “concerned” she is that the photo is making the rounds.
“I was really concerned with that and wanted to get to the bottom of that, because I was never contacted.”
“I think it’s really wrong when people use people’s images today to promote whatever they want.”
She’s especially annoyed because she believes vaccines are essential, “As a mother, my daughter was vaccinated.”
The actress went on to say she herself had measles as a child and that it was a horrible experience, “Having the measles was not a fun thing. I remember it spread through my family.”
In rare cases, the highly contagious illness can be fatal.
Anti vaxxers: “vaccines cause measles”
Me: pic.twitter.com/5YgZjSa4Ib— Shawnda "Fix MICRA" Westly ?? (@ShawndaWestly) April 25, 2019
The show, however, didn’t portray it that way when all six of the kids got the measles and were happy they could miss school.
In the photo that’s become a meme for anti-vaxxers, Marcia says, “If you have to get sick, sure can’t beat the measles.”
NPR reports anti-vaxxers like Dr Toni Bark will often bring up that episode to show the measles isn’t a serious illness. He has said, “You stayed home like the Brady Bunch show. You stayed home. You didn’t go to the doctor.”
“We never said, ‘Oh my God, your kid could die. Oh my God, this is a deadly disease.’ It’s become that.”
However, this is the exact opposite of what Brady Bunch creator Sherwood Schwartz would have wanted it to appear. His son, Lloyd J. Schwartz, told the radio station his father would have been upset to see the show was being used to spread the message of anti-vaxxers.
“Dad would be sorry, because he believed in vaccination… [He] had all of his kids vaccinated.”
Despite extensive research proving the safety of vaccines, cases are spreading as people choose not to vaccinate.
anti-vaxxers thanos
?
eliminating half
of
the population— ass slinging slasher (@iamdanielsara) April 28, 2019
The World Health Organisation notes that cases of the illness are up by 300 per cent worldwide in the first three months of 2019 compared to the same period last year.
So, that’s nuts.