The 90 % Project: Balancing the anti-vax message at Whangārei Growers' Markets

David Buxton and his children, Elizabeth 10, James, 8, and Quinn, 5, get the vaccination message across at Whangārei Growers Markets. Photo / Michael Cunningham

When David Buxton conducted his weekly Saturday produce shop at the Whangārei Growers Market he noticed the regular anti-vax campaigners and thought he would add balance.

So last week he provided a space at the site for both his own reasons for getting vaccinated and those of passersby.

At 6am, his pro-vaccine whiteboard read: "Get vaccinated for Whangārei", along with Buxton's own reasons: his vulnerable brother with young children, ending lockdowns which close the likes of the "fantastic markets", stop hospitals being overwhelmed, and so those at his church can worship freely and safely.

By 9am, the whiteboard space inviting others to share their reasons had been filled with around 40 scrawls from shoppers.

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They included: "Freedom", "Because my godfather was athletic in his 20s, then had to use sticks for the rest of his life after he got polio", "Because I'm educated and understand how vaccines work", "So the borders can open", and, "To protect my son who has asthma and struggles to breathe".

Vaccination messages collected by David Buxton at Saturday's Whangārei Growers Markets. Photo / Michael Cunningham

Protecting the community, family and friends, as well as enabling visiting family and friends featured.

"Going to the markets, you see a lot of the anti-vaxxers' signage and protesting and I just wanted people to see the other side of it as well and that many are supportive. They just don't vocalise it," he explained.

"There was muted positive support for most of the time as people got on with their market going except between 8am and 9am when the anti-vaxxers were out and the market had a queue for entry. During this time there was really strong positive support and lots of people took the effort to share their reason."

The first participant wrote: "I'm immuno-compromised and work with pregnant wahine".

"She was pretty stoked to see the sign. Numerous people passively read it, then the comments started up."

Buxton said it counter-balanced the 10-15 "voices for freedom", handing out brochures as shoppers queued to enter the markets between 8am and 9am and while, he "certainly had a few anti-vax people express contrary opinions to me", there was no aggro involved.

"It was just to reinforce that people should feel good about being vaccinated," said Buxton, who is awaiting his second vaccination.

He was joined by his children with his son wearing a supportive Nike "Just do it" shirt, and returned the subsequent Saturday, this time to convey his message via chalk to ground.

"I don't want to be in people's faces, I just want to do something that's quietly supportive. It's as much about people's comments as it is my own."