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- A mass vaccination site at Dodger Stadium briefly shut down Saturday after protesters arrived.
- The protesters included people from anti-vaccine and right-wing groups.
- People in line for vaccines had already been waiting for hours before the disruption.
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A mass COVID-19 vaccination site at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles temporarily shut down Saturday after protesters gathered near the entrance.
The protesters included people from anti-vaccine and far-right groups, according to the Los Angeles Times. A reporter from the Beverly Hills Courier said there were about 40 demonstrators. No incidents of violence have been reported.
Officials told the Times the Los Angeles Fire Department closed the gate as a precaution at around 2 p.m., but it was reopened about an hour later.
The Los Angeles Police Department said all scheduled vaccinations would occur.
In photos and videos shared on Twitter, protesters were carrying signs that said, “COVID=SCAM,” “I only like muzzles in the bedroom,” and “Tell Bill Gates to go vaccinate himself.”
Bill Gates says he has been vaccinated.
—Samuel Braslow (@SamBraslow) January 30, 2021
People in a long line of cars hoping to get the vaccine had been waiting for hours before the disruption, the Times reported. The protesters could also be seen in videos trying to hand out flyers to the people in line and speaking over a megaphone about the vaccine.
Despite some Americans expressing concerns over vaccines, the two coronavirus vaccines authorized for use in the US did not raise any major safety concerns during large clinical trials conducted with diverse groups of volunteers. Experts have said that anti-vaccination groups could slow the end of the pandemic.
Dodger Stadium has served as a COVID-19 testing site since May, and was recently turned into the city's first mass vaccination center. It's one of the largest mass vaccination sites in the US, and will be able to vaccinate about 12,000 people per day.