RFK Jr. headlines sold-out anti-vaccine conference alongside Andrew Wakefield
RFK Jr. headlines sold-out anti-vaccine conference alongside Andrew Wakefield
小罗伯特·肯尼迪与安德鲁·韦克菲尔德同台，领衔门票售罄的反疫苗会议
US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will deliver a keynote address at an anti-vaccine conference being held in Washington, DC, later this week and hosted by the anti-vaccine organization he once led, Children’s Health Defense (CHD). The organization announced Monday that Kennedy had signed on to the event.
美国卫生部长小罗伯特·肯尼迪（Robert F. Kennedy Jr.）将于本周晚些时候在华盛顿特区举行的一场反疫苗会议上发表主旨演讲。该会议由他曾领导的反疫苗组织“儿童健康防御”（Children’s Health Defense, CHD）主办。该组织周一宣布，肯尼迪已确认出席此次活动。
Kennedy will appear alongside other high-profile figures in the anti-vaccine world, including Andrew Wakefield, the disgraced former doctor who was stripped of his medical license over a fraudulent, now-retracted study that falsely claimed a link between autism and the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine. An investigation by a medical board found that Wakefield had mistreated vulnerable children and that his actions amounted to serious professional misconduct.
肯尼迪将与反疫苗领域的其他知名人士同台亮相，其中包括安德鲁·韦克菲尔德（Andrew Wakefield）。韦克菲尔德曾是一名医生，因一项欺诈性且现已被撤回的研究而声名狼藉，该研究错误地声称自闭症与麻疹、腮腺炎和风疹（MMR）疫苗之间存在关联，他也因此被吊销了行医执照。医学委员会的调查发现，韦克菲尔德曾虐待弱势儿童，其行为构成了严重的职业不端。
Despite being ostracized from the medical community, Wakefield has become an enduring figure in the anti-vaccine community. His dangerous falsehood that vaccines cause autism has also endured—with significant help from CHD and Kennedy, who have embraced and widely promoted the erroneous link. The online registration site for the CHD’s conference hails Wakefield as a “tireless advocate for parental choice.” For Kennedy, CHD’s cofounder and former leader, the site describes him as “a uniquely powerful and celebrated champion for those whose voices have long gone unheard.”
尽管被医学界排斥，韦克菲尔德却成为了反疫苗群体中经久不衰的人物。他关于“疫苗导致自闭症”的危险谎言也得以延续——这在很大程度上得益于CHD和肯尼迪的推波助澜，他们采纳并广泛宣传了这一错误关联。CHD会议的在线注册网站称赞韦克菲尔德是“家长选择权的孜孜不倦的倡导者”。对于作为CHD联合创始人及前领导人的肯尼迪，网站则形容他是“那些长期被忽视声音的人们所拥护的、具有独特影响力的杰出捍卫者”。
Anti-vaccine embrace
拥抱反疫苗立场
Overall, CHD’s conference is billed as a “pursuit of a more perfect future” and will discuss the current risks and opportunities for the “health freedom movement.” The event’s sessions and talks will be held on September 17, with an opening reception the night之前. Other speakers on the agenda include Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wisc.), who has been a vocal critic of vaccines; Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.); Mark Gorton, president of the Kennedy-aligned MAHA Institute; Jan Jekielek, a senior editor at the right-wing outlet Epoch Times; and a number of CHD staff, including CEO Mary Holland.
总体而言，CHD的这次会议被标榜为“追求更完美的未来”，并将讨论“健康自由运动”当前面临的风险与机遇。会议的议程和讲座将于9月17日举行，前一天晚上设有开幕招待会。议程上的其他演讲者包括一直公开批评疫苗的参议员罗恩·约翰逊（Ron Johnson，共和党，威斯康星州）、参议员兰德·保罗（Rand Paul，共和党，肯塔基州）、肯尼迪阵营的MAHA研究所主席马克·戈顿（Mark Gorton）、右翼媒体《大纪元时报》的高级编辑扬·杰基莱克（Jan Jekielek），以及包括首席执行官玛丽·霍兰德（Mary Holland）在内的多名CHD工作人员。
In-person tickets to the conference, priced at $250, are sold out, according to the website. But limited passes for seating in an area of the main conference room are available for $125, as are tickets for livestream access at $100.
据网站显示，售价250美元的会议现场门票已售罄。但主会场区域的限量座位票售价为125美元，直播访问门票售价为100美元。
Kennedy formally separated from CHD when he pursued his current role as health secretary around the start of 2025. He has since publicly tried to distance himself from CHD and his anti-vaccine views, repeatedly claiming in his confirmation hearing that he is “pro-vaccine”—despite his clear and lengthy record of being an anti-vaccine activist. Kennedy’s decision to headline a starkly anti-vaccine event appears to be a shift toward openly embracing his ideology and agenda. That shift comes shortly after reports that President Trump has urged Kennedy to aggressively pursue the falsehood that vaccines cause autism.
肯尼迪在2025年初担任卫生部长时，正式与CHD脱离了关系。此后，他公开试图与CHD及其反疫苗观点保持距离，并在确认听证会上反复声称自己是“支持疫苗的”——尽管他有着长期且明确的反疫苗活动记录。肯尼迪决定领衔一场立场鲜明的反疫苗活动，似乎标志着他正转向公开拥抱其意识形态和议程。在此之前不久，有报道称特朗普总统曾敦促肯尼迪积极推行“疫苗导致自闭症”这一虚假说法。