Photos and words by Sean Rayford

All photos made September 18, 2021 in Columbia, SC

Protesting for medical liberties, hundreds of demonstrators gathered at the South Carolina Statehouse on Saturday afternoon. “We just wanted to come out and say we’re not going to stand for our rights to be trampled on,” said organizer Trish Lazarin, of Summerville, SC.

She’s frustrated by local leaders bucking the state proviso limiting pandemic mandates and believes the vaccines aren’t performing as promised.

“It's a bad product, it is not what they said it’s gonna do. They sold us on herd immunity. They said ‘herd immunity’ — and ‘we’re gonna stop people from dying.’ That's false advertising. A product that allows you to still get sick, to still transmit, to still get hospitalized - and still die?”

She blames lies and misinformation. “It's not really commonplace to get the real truth,” she said.

With a variety of speakers, demonstrators cheered them on from the statehouse lawn and marched down Gervais St., two blocks into the Vista and back up the hill. A man with a “FUCK BIDEN” flag took the lead. Dressed in patriotic colors, protestors wore shirts with political messages and carried signs that read, “FREEDOM NOT FORCE,” “MY BODY MY CHOICE” and “FREEDOM OVER FAUCI.”

There were dozens of other similar messages.

Corey Allen, of the low country based Overton Report, said the group rallied for personal choice and against tyranny. He appeared to compare current events to Nazi Germany.

“We are at a similar spot now, to when the citizens of Germany could have stood up and said no, you will not dehumanize, destroy and harm an entire population based on race, religion, political values, political ideologies or anything else,” said Allen, “But they didn't didn't stand up because they didn't quite see the severity of it. What's our excuse?”

Also participating in the rally was Nicole Smyth, a vice chair of the Sumter County Young Republicans. She received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine but wish she hadn’t. Within 24 hours she experienced a rapid heart rate, stabbing body pains and shortness of breath.

“I couldn’t walk. My husband had to carry me,” she said.

She thought she was getting better but then experienced more symptoms, shakes and headaches and problems breathing. When she went to urgent care they said her spleen was enlarged and a doctor told her they didn’t know what the vaccine was doing to her.

“I know a lot of people who have gotten [vaccinated] and they are just fine. But I have not been one of those,” she said, “I got it, but I wish I hadn’t.”