‘I got the shot.’ Black leaders urge Middle Georgians to get COVID vaccine

A group of Black Middle Georgia leaders including pastors, artists, healthcare workers and former Macon mayor C. Jack Ellis has launched a media campaign encouraging members of the Black community to get the COVID-19 vaccine.

The campaign was launched as the Biden administration ramps up efforts to target communities of color with vaccine information and access. In a survey conducted last fall, 49% of African Americans said that they were unlikely to get vaccinated. That number has since dropped to around 25%, around the same number as white and non-white Americans.

Dr. Wade Scott with Scott’s Health Mart Pharmacy on Pio Nono Avenue, said the Black community’s distrust toward the vaccine has been built over the course of many years. But his goal is to let people know that this shot is safe and encourage skeptics to consider getting the shot.

“That trust is a big factor. The reason we are out here is to let people know that people like myself have got the shot,” Scott said. “You may not trust the CDC. You may not trust the President. But maybe you can trust the people in your local community, like your pharmacist.”

Last week, Scott’s pharmacy was set to receive its first shipment of the vaccine, which the pharmacy applied for back in December. Scott’s pharmacy has handled various vaccines in the past and he said they’re glad to finally be able to help administer the COVID-19 vaccine.

“We were doing vaccines probably 10 to 20 years before the big drug stores like CVS and Walgreens,” Scott said. “That is something new for them, but we have been doing it for 30 years.”

Vaccine access

In a recent NPR story, a 72-year old California resident named Maxine Toler said that a large part of the mistrust with the current vaccine has come from the lack of access in minority communities. President Joe Biden’s administration did not want to prematurely generate demand until the vaccines became widely available.

Now that the vaccine has become widely available the push to encourage vaccine acceptance is ramping up both on the national level and on the local level.

Alvin Lattimore, a member of the New Beginning Missionary Baptist Church on May Avenue in Macon, said he is getting the shot because his pastor James Baker helped him get set up with an appointment.

“I am eager because COVID-19 is really serious. I am really really excited to get the shot,” Lattimore said. “My pastor preaches it every Sunday that people of color are dying at an alarming rate. It is important. I am trying to encourage all of my friends to get the shot.”

‘You can trust me’

Black Macon leaders took part in a commercial shoot outside the Tubman Museum to encourage Middle Georgians to get the shot. Scott said that his approach to being a part of this local campaign is simply to let people know what he would do for himself or his family members. He said that it is easy for some to believe the misinformation and conspiracy theories surrounding the vaccine but it’s important for the leaders in the community to help provide accurate information.

“The shot may have some side effects but it is nothing like COVID. The idea of being sick in the hospital and dying alone should be enough to encourage people to get the shot,” Scott said. “I think it is a great thing when Black people in the community can come out front and say ‘You can trust me. You look like me. I look like you. You can trust me.’”

This story was originally published March 30, 2021 at 5:00 AM.