Since we are preparing to extend vaccination to children under 12, we have also been preparing to deal with certain cases that had arisen, in a similar way, when vaccination for 12 to 17 year olds had been made accessible. There will be hesitant parents who will have to be listened to and tried to convince; and recalcitrant parents who will outright refuse to vaccinate their children and who, despite our best efforts, will remain deaf to our arguments.
And since the parents of children under 13 must come to an agreement, there will therefore also, inevitably, be parents who do not agree on the vaccination issue and who will have to ask the court to decide. This has happened before. In these delicate situations, the criterion which predominates and which makes it possible to decide is always that of the best interests of the child. However, in the pandemic context that concerns us and given the facts available, the best interests of the child currently, recognized by the courts, is to have access to vaccination.
Currently, all these cases are discussed in the public space. We have not neglected, either, to take an interest in these children aged at least 14 years who can consent to the vaccination even if their parents oppose it. I tell myself, moreover, that it should not be an easy decision, to oppose parental authority at such a young age and to have the courage to choose what one considers to be best for oneself. . In short, we dare to speak openly about all of this. However, other cases of figure exist concerning the vaccination of minors, but seem to be taboo since it is nowhere discussed whereas this should also concern us socially: I am talking about children under the age of 13 who will want to be get vaccinated while both parents are opposed (those will not be heard by the courts) and children who will not want to be vaccinated, children who may even be afraid of the vaccine, children who, quite naturally, will side with their parents who themselves refuse vaccination. And I can’t help but wonder: what about the best interests of the child in these cases?
It is the whole extremely complex problem of individual freedom which is at issue here. We all have the freedom to choose and decide. And if we are parents, we also have the responsibility to choose and decide for our children who are not yet mature enough to be autonomous, that is to say to choose and decide in a free and enlightened way, by them themselves. We must therefore understand that freedom supposes two things: on the one hand, the capacity to judge for oneself and, on the other hand, the burden of responsibility. “With great powers correspond great responsibilities”, and this is quite true.
Freedom of choice represents an immense power which comes with an equally immense responsibility, because if we are wrong, if we judge badly, we pay the consequences. It is on these elementary principles (which I popularize very quickly) that our entire justice system is based. When we use our freedom, we therefore have every interest in making prudent, enlightened and reasonable use of it since our choices have consequences that we must assume. Sometimes the choices we make are of little consequence. But sometimes, certain choices can have important consequences. To get vaccinated or not to get vaccinated? We are here faced with a choice that can have important consequences. Hence the importance of judging based on quality information and the truth, otherwise, we risk a lot.
This is why the conspiracy theories, the fake news and other lies which circulate everywhere constitute real plagues since they feed our judgment very badly.
Now let’s be frank. We are not all equal in the means at our disposal when it comes to using our sanity, while the burden remains the same on everyone. There are therefore adults who are better or more equipped, and others less.
Perhaps the latter themselves grew up in a context more or less favorable to the development of autonomy and critical thinking. And it should be added that if some adults have despite everything been able to live up to the responsibilities that are theirs, others do not care, are stubborn and do as they see fit. Therefore, it means that children suffer the consequences of choices that go against their best interests, every day, in the name of individual freedom. And vaccination is only one choice among many, so imagine all the rest … It is time to talk about that, too.