In the midst of the state of Florida’s war against vaccines, one Black man is catching heat after he likened vaccines to chattel slavery. Dr. Joseph Ladapo has had his fair share of controversies since stepping into his role as surgeon general, but in order to get the full picture, you’d have to start at the beginning.
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From becoming a respected doctor to being tapped to serve under Gov. Ron DeSantis’ MAGA regime, Ladapo is no stranger to being a lone wolf. In fact, the 46-year-old became the first Black surgeon general of his state in 2021. But despite Black Americans cheering for diversity, Ladapo has done nothing but prove his alliance to conservative conspiracy theorists looking to end vaccines and medical protections for all Americans.
Coming to America
Ladapo was born in Nigeria and migrated to the U.S. with his family when he was five, according to the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO). His father was a microbiologist, which inspired Ladapo to follow in his footsteps.
Eventually, he landed at Wake Forest University then obtained his medical degree from Harvard Medical School and his PhD in Health Policy from Harvard Graduate School. Some years down the line, Dr. Ladapo became a professor at the University of Florida (UF), which wasn’t the beginning of his life-long commitment to research…
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Unlike many folks appointed by Gov. DeSantis, Ladapo’s actually has a reputable background. Before UF, he was an Associate Professor at the David Geffen School of Medicine. And before that, Ladapo worked in the Department of Population Health at NYU School of Medicine and at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, ASTHO reported.
His research has been backed by the National Institutes of Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and it included several clinic trials and studies… So how did a respected doctor become the forefront of Florida’s anti-vax campaign?
Dipping into Politics
On paper, Dr. Ladapo seems perfect. Between his multiple degrees, wife and three kids, medical research and touching childhood story, it was almost impossible for him not to catch the eyes of high Florida politicians. In 2021 –a turning point in the COVID-19 pandemic — DeSantis appointed him as surgeon general. On day one, Ladapo got to work.
“I’m really happy to be working with the governor who has a similar vision about how to think about weighing the costs and benefits with managing this pandemic,” Ladapo said during a September 2021 news conference. That same day, he signed an emergency order repealing required quarantines for schoolchildren exposed to COVID, POLITICO reported.
Immediately, Ladapo was met with backlash, and the UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine even removed his name and biography from its website. But with God — and DeSantis — by his side, Ladapo continued causing damage to previously established pandemic systems.
Getting Rid of Vaccines in Florida
In 2022, Ladapo was criticized for falsely proclaiming a link between cardiac-related death for young men and the Covid vaccine. The next year, POLITICO reported Dr. Ladapo altered a state-driven study about vaccines. Now, he’s under fire for attempting to rid public schools of vaccine mandates, making Florida the first state to do so, according to CNN.
Experts say his push will have negative impacts. “When everyone in a school is vaccinated, it’s harder for diseases to spread, and easier for everyone to keep the fun and learning going,” the president of the American Academy of Pediatrics, Susan Kressly, told BBC. “When children are sick and miss school, parents also miss work, which not only impacts those families, but also the local economy,” she continued.
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