It didn’t come as a surprise as the Benjamin Franklin Reform Democratic Club (BFRDC) came in support of Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz in his primary bout against George Diaz for the 81st Assembly District seat, but there was some heckling he did receive from non-members.

As Dinowitz and Diaz laid out their platforms to the club on Nov. 20, in which Dinowitz was unanimously voted as the preferred candidate, Dinowitz was criticized by anti-vaxxer protesters whose chants could be heard from inside the packed room at Tibbets Towers.

The protestors voiced their displeasure with the Assemblyman since he was a prime sponsor of a June bill that banned vaccine exemptions on religious grounds, which was signed into law. A Facebook video showed a woman donning a “we spread truth not disease” T-shirt joined by five other protesters in the lobby of Tibbett Towers where the club held the meeting.

In conflicting fashion, nonmembers of the BFRDC made numerous attempts to walk into the meeting, but were not allowed. This along with an active police presence, led to shouting matches between the officers and protesters. Six anti-vaxxers in total were escorted off the premises at the request of building management