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By Ewan Palmer
News Reporter
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A clip of a pilot describing why he is against the vaccine mandate on airline staff has gone viral after being widely shared by right-wing figures.
The clip of Shawn Andrew Walker has been viewed 57,000 times after he posted it onto his TikTok account, as well as more than two million after it was reshared on Twitter.
During the video, Walker described how he is now "facing an ultimatum, not a choice, but an ultimatum," after being told that he must comply with Joe Biden's mandate meaning all federal employees must be vaccinated against COVID-19.
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"I'm being told in order to continue my career as an airline pilot, I must be vaccinated, which really means I have to choose between putting food on the table for my family, and my freedom of choice," Walker said.
"The situation goes far beyond health. We the American people who fought for freedom for 257 years, we go around the world spreading ideas of freedom and democracy, we help other countries and people fight for their freedoms, while ours are being stripped away," he added.
"You may think being forced to wear a mask or get a vaccination is insignificant. But when you begin to compile mandate after mandate and loss of freedom after freedom, it becomes very significant."
Walker's profiles appear to show that he has also been involved in other work, such as online marketing.
Walker posted the clip onto his @cellsaucenutrition TikTok account, which appears to promote nutritional supplements for a company he set up. None of his other videos reveal him as a pilot, and instead, give exercise tips and nutritional advice.
Walker's LinkedIn page lists that he is a pilot at American Eagle Airlines, now Envoy, since 2004, but he has also held several other jobs in the online marketing world.
Since September 2019, he is listed as being the business owner at CopySkills.co— a website that no longer works—a copywriter at Clear Cut Copywriting, as well as running his own website where he helps "network marketers and affiliate marketers succeed online and offline!"
As noted by Rolling Stone, Walker wrote on Facebook in 2014 that Vimeo banned him for posting what the site described as "videos pertaining to multi-level marketing, affiliate programs, get-rich quick schemes, money coaching, cash gifting, work-from-home gigs, or similar ventures."
Walker's Facebook and Twitter also does not state he works as a pilot, and instead offers tips to help "business owners and freelancers craft persuasive copy" along with a link to the defunct CopySkills site.
Walker's video went viral amid continuing speculation from right-wing figures that the recent mass cancelations and disruptions with SouthWest Airlines flights were due to pilots and air traffic controllers' walkout out in protest over the vaccine mandate.
Despite these claims being dismissed by SouthWest Airlines, the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association' and the Federal Aviation Administration, high-profile names such as Tucker Carlson and Ted Cruz have continued to claim that irate airline workers were responsible for the canceled flights.
Conservative figures such as Candace Owens have also shared Walker's video as proof that pilots are unhappy with the vaccine mandate and are willing to take actions to prevent being taken one.
"This is the single bravest thing I have seen in years. God bless these Pilots. The heroes we need right now," tweeted right-wing pundit Benny Johnson while sharing the clip.
In a statement to Rolling Stone, American Airlines reshared a letter to their employees from Chairman and CEO Doug Parker which stated: "While we are still working through the details of the federal requirements, it is clear that team members who choose to remain unvaccinated will not be able to work at American Airlines."
The airline declined to comment on if Walker is currently a pilot with their company.
Walker and American Airlines have been contacted for comment.
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