Orthodox Jews and Catholic businessman team up to sue NYC mayor over vaccine warrant
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A Roman Catholic businessman and five Orthodox Jews, including a rabbi, are among 18 plaintiffs suing New York City Mayor Eric Adams and his health commissioner over the city’s “Key to NYC” vaccine passport program .
Lawyers for the nonprofit Thomas More Society filed a lawsuit Monday in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York, alleging the program is an “unprecedented abuse of power” in violation of the first, Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments to the US Constitution. . The complaint slams the program as a “reckless and ill-conceived government policy that ignores sound medical science and the principle of informed consent to medical treatment.”
The plaintiffs, three of whom also sued on behalf of their minor children, objected to COVID-19 vaccines on religious grounds.
New York Mayor Eric Adams and New York Governor Kathy Hochul leave the funeral of deceased NYPD officer Wilbert Mora at St. Patrick’s Cathedral on February 2, 2022, in New York City.
(Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
Many religious objections to vaccines cite the alleged use of fetal tissue related to their development. None of the COVID-19 vaccines contain fetal cells, but fetal cell lines, which are grown in the lab from decades-old fetal tissue, have been used in the research and development of vaccines distributed by Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson.
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“Key to NYC,” which requires proof of vaccination for indoor dining, fitness and entertainment in New York City, was first put in place by former New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, but Adams continues to apply it.
In December, de Blasio’s office also said it was expanding the program to include children ages 5 to 11, who were required to present proof of a vaccination dose for those locations on December 14. New Yorkers ages 12 and older were required to show proof of two doses of the vaccine on Dec. 27, instead of one, unless they received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
New York Mayor Bill de Blasio gives a thumbs up after casting his vote for re-election in the Park Slope section of the Brooklyn borough of New York, November 7, 2017. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid
Special Counsel for the Thomas More Society, Christopher Ferrara, said in a statement provided to Fox News Digital, “The intent and effect of ‘Key to NYC’ is to create a two-tiered society in the city of New York, in which those who refuse to be vaccinated against COVID-19 will be reduced to the status of second-class citizens, deprived of normal social life until they consent to the injection.”
“Nothing like this has ever been seen in the country’s history,” he added. “Tyranny in the name of COVID reaches a new level here.”
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New York Mayor Eric Adams speaks during a news conference at City Hall in New York, U.S., January 24, 2022.
(REUTERS/Brendan McDermid)
Ferrara also noted that “Key to NYC” is full of exemptions for certain groups and activities, including visiting pop stars, professional athletes and their entourages.
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“After all, the privileged vaccinated class cannot be deprived of their entertainment,” Ferrara said. “Yet these plaintiffs are denied basic human rights simply because they refuse to be injected with vaccines that don’t even prevent the transmission of the virus, as everyone now knows.”