Jim Carrey has issued an apology to the family of an autistic boy after posting the child’s photograph on Twitter, and then being taken to task by the boy’s mother for not seeking their permission.
Advertisement
He later posted an apology to the family of Alex Echols of Eugene, Oregon.
On Wednesday, Carrey – known for his comedic acting and his scientifically illegitimate opposition to vaccination – began tweeting pictures of supposedly autistic children in distress.
“Jim Carrey has a huge platform – a huge following – and is misrepresenting my son’s image by attaching it to his anti-vax rant”, Karen Echols told Buzzfeed’s Virginia Hughes by email. To drive the point, he posted several photos of children with autism crying, and Alex Echols’ photo was included in the tweet.
“California Gov says yes to poisoning more children with mercury and aluminum in mandatory vaccines”. Alex already had a genetic condition called Tuberous Sclerosis, which affects the brain and other body parts and has autism as a side effect of the disease, even before he was immunized, the report explained.
“I’m very disgusted and sickened that a celebrity would use a photo like this that was used in the first place to spread awareness of Tuberous Sclerosis to mock him and and my sister for vaccinations”, Welch wrote on Instagram. “Please spread this, and let’s try to get this tweet removed”.
Advertisement
The move infuriated the teenager’s mother, who said the star did not have permission to publish the picture.
