How A U.K. Imam Countered Vaccine Hesitancy And Helped Thousands Get The 'Jab'
Editor's note: The fight against disinformation has become a facet of nearly every story NPR international correspondents cover, from vaccine hesitancy to authoritarian governments spreading lies. This and other stories by NPR correspondents around the globe try to tease out how effective certain tactics have been at combating disinformation, and what lessons can be learned from other countries' experiences.
BIRMINGHAM, England — Shenaz Sajan works as a caregiver in a hospice in this city, which made her eligible for the coronavirus vaccine soon after England's National Health Service began rolling it out in December. When friends urged Sajan to get vaccinated, her response was unequivocal.
"I just jumped and said, 'No! Of course not,'" she recalls. "'I'm not having it.'"
That's because, a mosque in Birmingham, had read all kinds of false claims on the internet, such as the vaccine would damage people's DNA or that it contained pork product, which Islam forbids.
