Jimmy Barnes’ daughter in the firing line
Jimmy Barnes’ daughter, Mahalia, has delivered the perfect set-down to anti-vaxxers who criticised her for supporting her daughter’s decision to get vaccinated.
Barnes posted a photo of her 12-year-old daughter Ruby with a freshly-jabbed arm, writing on Instagram, “She is grateful and relieved for the opportunity to keep herself safe and to help protect the wider community - as am I. Proud of her for getting it done at the first opportunity in spite of her anxiety around needles.”
Barnes went on to encourage her followers to get vaccinated, writing, “If you can, get yourself vaccinated. This means all the eligible people in our family are at least part vaccinated now - we have some who’ve had AZ, some with Pfizer and some with Moderna. Nothing is 100% - but they all help to reduce the spread and reduce the severity.”
Predictably, anti-vaxxers quickly found the post, with one writing, “Baa baa ... your daughter should make up yer own mind and be told all the facts first not follow the sheep n gat a fake jab.” Another, describing the vaccine as ‘experimental’, wrote, “I hate to rain on anyone’s parade, but facts are important.” Yet another critic wrote that Barnes was being misled by ““media and medical teams that will have their license removed if they do not comply with what is being served through corporations streaming from the lack of peer reviewed research.”
Barnes responded to some of the critics, writing, “There are perfectly healthy children hospitalised and dying all over the world. I’ll take the advice of my doctors and the experts.”
Fortunately, the majority of comments were overwhelmingly supportive, with many congratulating and thanking Ruby for getting vaccinated despite her fear of needles.
Barnes had previously made similar encouraging posts following her own vaccinations, most recently last month, saying she’d “never been so excited for a needle” and ending with the important note that “vaccination is our way out”.
Image: Lisa Maree Williams/Getty Images