Vaccine-Damaged Children: American as Apple Pie

Johnny Gruelle's 13 year-old daughter, Marcella, was killed by a fatal vaccine reaction. The public school she'd been attending had been routinely inoculating children without informing the parents. Seven doctors were called in to make pronouncements on her death. Six determined the cause to be vaccine-induced and the seventh declined to comment. Interestingly, the seventh doctor was also head of the school board and a staunch advocate for vaccination.

Marcella's death was not an immediate reaction. She died a very slow and subtle death. In the months after her unconsented inoculation she became lethargic and lost her appetite. Marcella became feverish, fatigued and hypotonic (loss of muscle control) as her body and nervous system fought hard against the poisons forced into her bloodstream. At the end, she was as limp as a ragdoll.

A successful writer and illustrator, Johnny Gruelle also created dolls. Marcella's grandmother and he created a doll somewhat different than the rigid, clay or composition ones of the time, such as the Kewpie doll and others which had erect postures and healthy demeanors. Instead, they designed a doll which was limp and lifeless. Raggedy Ann was marketed by Marshall Field in 1920 and is one of the richest pieces of Americana over 80 years later. Raggedy Ann's limp and lifeless body is indeed a fitting tribute to Marcella, and to all vaccine-damaged children, as well as a symbol of the long history of senseless and tragic deaths and disabilities associated with vaccines.

As an illustrator, Gruele had a long association with a magazine called Physical Culture. This came to an end in May of 1921 when asked to illustrate an article dealing with vaccinations. The cartoon shown below, along with his postscript, was Johnny's response to this assignment, which turned out to be his last for the magazine.

Raggedy Ann, whose name is taken from the James Whitcombe Riley poems, "Little Orphan Annie" and "The Raggedy Man", is as American as apple pie. Ironically, it is also a symbol for over 80 years of children's deaths. Little did many of us know, that as we played with Raggedy Ann as children, that we were really just practicing for when we'd get our very own real, limp and lifeless vaccine-injured and killed babies.

References:
1. Flynn, Barbara, Letter to State Epidemiologist of New Jersey, January 10, 2001: p.2
2. Tuleja, Tad, The New York Public Library Book of Popular Americana, 1994; p. 315, Stonesong Press Inc.
3. Hall, Patricia, Johnny Gruele: Creator of "Raggedy Ann and Andy," 1993; pp. 87-92.