I will not be renewing my dietitian license in Maine; this is not my choice. My request for a religious exemption to the COVID vaccine mandate was denied.

I follow Christian Science, a religion usually granted exemption. Not this time. I was told that because of penalties from the federal government, my employer had to “draw a line in the sand,” and deny my request.

I have lost my job for no other reason than my refusal to submit to a jab. This is where I choose to draw a line in the sand.

Our elected officials in Washington, together with the Centers for Disease Control, are methodically dismantling our basic freedoms. By condoning this abhorrent behavior, and by not standing up for the residents of Maine, our state government is complicit in this federal tyranny.

I believe that mandating this injection is a crime against humanity. Under no circumstance should a government ever possess that power. Tyranny is tyranny regardless of how beautifully it’s packaged to appear beneficial for the greater good.

These mandates, if not stopped, will continue. Two jabs will no longer qualify us as compliant, endless boosters are the plan.

Donna Dodge, Denmark

Editor’s note: The CDC recommends COVID vaccines for everyone 5 years of age and older, and has recently expanded recommendations for booster shots to now include all adults ages 18 years and older who received a Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna COVID-19 vaccine as part of their primary series.