Actress and new mom Amanda Peet referred to parents who choose not to vaccinate their children as “parasites” in a recent interview. But despite her public apology aimed at parents of autistic children who believe that vaccines may have caused the illness, Jenny McCarthy hasn’t forgiven or forgotten.
“She (Peet) has a lot of [nerve] to come forward and be on that side, because there is an angry mob on my side, and I like the fact that I can say she’s completely wrong,” McCarthy (whose 6-year-old son has autism) tells the upcoming issue of Spectrum magazine, which hits stands Wednesday.
“I look at (Peet) now and say to myself, ‘That was me before I had autism in my life,’ and until she walks in our shoes, she really has no idea,” McCarthy added.
But McCarthy isn’t the only one taking a stand against Peet. National autism advocacy group Autism United is calling for a boycott of all of the actress’s movies.
“We want to send a clear message to her,” the organization’s Executive Director John Gilmore told Pop Tarts in a statement on Monday. “Ms. Peet’s comments are deplorable and an apology will not suffice. We applaud Jenny McCarthy’s continued efforts and for speaking up for our community.”
McCarthy and her longtime lover Jim Carrey continued their crusade this past summer and led a rally of thousands in Washington, D.C., to put pressure on the federal government to remove toxins from vaccines and fight for fewer childhood vaccinations prior to the age of 2.
But Peet (who is the spokeswoman for Every Child By Two, which raises awareness of the importance of getting children fully immunized by the time they are 2) hit back last month by joining the organization’s co-founder and former first lady Rosalynn Carter for a New York press conference to “dispel the myths” of McCarthy’s campaign.
“I am so distressed with what is happening, and now our mission has become more difficult,” Carter said. “As a result of all this there is an outbreak of measles and whooping cough.”
Earlier this year, the American Academy of Pediatrics put out a casting call for a star-studded spokesperson to combat McCarthy’s campaigning, and so Peet became involved.
(source)
