Why You Should Get Vaccinated to Attend Swing Dance Events

Organizers behind the Cicada Club, Camp Hollywood, and other venues are starting to announce the first new Swing dance events since the start of the pandemic, with the requirement that patrons show proof of COVID-19 vaccination.

While the vast majority of Swing dancers welcome and support this policy, a vocal minority does not.

I wanted to express my support to organizers who are trying to re-start Swing dancing after this devastating pandemic. The fastest way to do that is to require patrons to be vaccinated.

And no, it’s not a violation of HIPAA privacy laws to require vaccination. Just like a restaurant can refuse service for not wearing shoes and shirt, venues can refuse service to those who are not vaccinated. You can easily verify this with a Google search.

Swing Dancing Is High Risk for the Unvaccinated

Take a look at this CDC infographic rating activities from Least Safe to Safest, with regard to spreading COVID-19.

Obviously, the CDC doesn’t mention Swing dancing specifically, but there is this: “Participate in an indoor, high intensity exercise class”, which sounds pretty close to Swing dancing to me. It’s rated as “Least Safe”.

In fact, Swing dancing is riskier because unlike in an exercise class, you are in really close face-to-face contact with people. It’s hard to think of a more efficient way to spread a highly communicable disease than partner dancing.

Getting Vaccinated Helps You and Others

Getting the COVID-19 protects yourself. According to the CDC:

Indoor and outdoor activities pose minimal risk to fully vaccinated people.

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/fully-vaccinated-guidance.html

Furthermore, there’s evidence that getting vaccinated makes you less likely to spread COVID-19. According to the CDC:

a growing body of evidence suggests that fully vaccinated people are less likely to have asymptomatic infection or transmit SARS-CoV-2 to others.

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/fully-vaccinated-guidance.html

Getting vaccinated also helps protect Swing venues and organizers. Imagine if a whole bunch of unvaccinated people showed up to a Swing dance event (yes, there are still large numbers of unvaccinated people around), and it turned into a super-spreader event, just when the world was starting to open up. You can say goodbye to Swing dancing there and maybe other venues for a long time.

Plus one other small thing… people could die.

So, get vaccinated. Do it for yourself. Do it for others. Do it to go Swing dancing again. Be grateful that organizers are putting themselves out there to re-start our favorite pastime – Swing dancing! – Brian