Anti-vaccine mandate protesters gathered in Times Square to protest New York’s Covid-19 vaccine mandate – and one woman likened the rule to the murderous persecution suffered by Jews in Nazi Germany.   

Hundreds of people lined the city streets holding American flags and signs that read: ‘No to the vaccine, I feel discrimination against, harassed, singled out and rejected for defending my rights.’

One anti-vaxxer held two signs that said: ‘How did the Nazi’s (sic) do it? They said the Jews were diseased.’

On the other poster there was a picture of a swastika under text asking, ‘What happened to “Never again?!”‘

Angered New Yorkers also protested to impeach Biden, calling him a ‘killer, pervert (and) traitor’ while some were spotted in Make America Great Again (MAGA) hats and sporting red white and blue clothes. 

Barely any masks were seen in the crowd and one family used their toddler’s stroller to display a sign demanding ‘mask choice’. 

A pole dancer even took to the streets to perform and protest the vaccine mandate. 

Others in the crowd, which stretched for several blocks, refuted vaccine passports and gave out stickers that read: ‘Those who sell the panic sell the cure.’ 

One woman’s poster read: ‘my body. My family. My choice. F*** your mandate!’ 

Saturday’s protest comes as the NYC Department of Health said that at least 60 per cent of all eligible New York City residents are fully-vaccinated.

Since the end of August the Big Apple now requires proof of vaccination for people attending indoor venues such as restaurants, gyms and shows, as the city tries to get back on its feet.  

The vaccination mandate aimed to persuade more people to get vaccinated with the threat of missing out on the city’s world-class amenities.

‘We do not want to go back to restrictions,’ De Blasio said at a virtual news conference. ‘The key to our progress is vaccination.’ 

Businesses had a grace period, which ended on September 13, to begin implementing vaccine checkpoints before facing $1,000 fines.

Mask rules have remained largely relaxed, although New Yorkers must still wear them on public transport and in health settings, with individual businesses also permitted to impose a mandatory face-covering rule if they wish.  

Last month NY Mayor Bill de Blasio said every department of education employee must receive at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine by September 27 in efforts to stop the hyper-contagious Delta variant spread through the city. 

He did not offer the option of a weekly test instead. 

City data showed that only 28 per cent of black NYC residents between the ages of 18 and 44 are fully-vaccinated, compared to 49 per cent of Hispanics, 52 per cent of whites, and 82 per cent of Asians in the same age group. 

Since New York announced its vaccine mandate, New Orleans and San Francisco have issued similar orders for patrons and staff of indoor businesses. 

The US currently has an almost 149,000 weekly average of new cases and the death toll has reached 673,000. 

Others – particularly in parts of the city where people have resisted getting the vaccine – worried the mandate would be a fatal blow to businesses that were prevented for months last year from serving patrons indoors since the responsibility to enforce the policy will mostly fall on the businesses themselves. 

However, many others disagree and a number of incidents involving masking and vaccine mandates for indoor diners have broken out across the country.   

A host at a popular New York City restaurant was assaulted by three women from Texas after she asked for proof they had been vaccinated against Covid-19.

The interaction was captured on video as the three women suddenly attacked a host at Carmine’s on the Upper West Side and broke her necklace Thursday afternoon after she asked for proof of vaccination.

As the assault broke out Carmine’s staff jumped in to defend the host and separate her from her attackers as the three Texans yelled about not being allowed inside.

The attack left the 24-year-old victim bruised and scratched, police said. Restaurant owner Jeffrey Bank said the employee was taken to a hospital for treatment and was doing well Friday but was ‘extremely shook up’.

The three women were arrested on charges of misdemeanor assault and criminal mischief. They were given desk appearance tickets and ordered to appear in court October 5.

The same day a drunken woman, branded as ‘Karen,’ in California attacked a restaurant worker for not wearing a mask.

That woman was maskless when she attacked a restaurant supervisor and demanded she wear a mask and let her check her vaccination card, yelling at the woman: ‘You don’t f***ing deserve your f***ing job.’

Karen ordered that the supervisor wear a mask and when no one responded to her commands, she grabbed a bottle of cleaning spray off the counter and sprayed it in the worker’s face before finally leaving the restaurant.

Source: Daily Mail