Over the past year, the coronavirus pandemic has wreaked havoc upon Black communities nationwide and most African Americans know someone who has succumbed to it.
Recent research commissioned by the national NAACP reveals that half of the Black community in the U.S. has been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and is optimistic about a return to normalcy soon.
However, African Americans continue to over-index in confirmed cases and hospitalizations, the most severe economic impacts and the number of deaths.
“Every individual has the right to their own choices, but it’s obvious from our numbers that the coronavirus hasn’t been defeated.” – Derrick Johnson, NAACP president and CEO.
As the war against the pandemic in America’s Black communities rages on, the key battlefront in mid-2021 is reliable, up-to-date, trustworthy information enabling the unvaccinated—and those who are wary about vaccinating their younger children—to make the most well-informed decisions.
The NAACP’s ‘COVID. KNOW MORE’ campaign was launched in May to provide Black Americans with data and resources on COVID-19 tailored specifically to them.
“We are certainly a strong, enduring and resilient people, but the data doesn’t lie,” said Derrick Johnson, NAACP president and CEO.
“Our research shows that Black Americans are optimistic about getting ahead of the COVID-19 crisis and resuming their daily lives and activities, yet there remains a great deal of work to be done—especially in reaching our young people and men with the information that they need,” he added.
The NAACP survey has concluded:
As of July 28, more than half of African Americans (51%) report that they are fully vaccinated; another 5% have received one dose and 6% report that they have an appointment to be vaccinated.
Younger, lower-income and Southern Blacks lag, being the least likely Black adults to have received any of the vaccines.
Preventing the spread of the coronavirus, especially to friends and family, are the greatest motivations for African Americans to get vaccinated.
70% of Black parents with children ages 12 and older have had their children vaccinated or plan to do so, despite some trepidation about vaccinating children under age 12 (of those polled, 32 percent are unsure.)
Half of African American parents want their children to attend school fully in-person, with only a small percentage preferring their kids to remain remotely-schooled
While a most African Americans say their lives have been substantially altered since the onset of the pandemic, there is increased optimism as nearly half now say that the worst of the pandemic is over. Two-thirds expect life in their local communities to return to normal by the end of this year.
Regarding continued vigilance and protecting themselves, 54 percent of African Americans say they will continue to wear masks in both public and private settings.
Among essential workers, 61 percent report that they are likely to don masks all the time.
NAACP polling results reveal that 87 percent of fully vaccinated Black Americans are likely to take a booster shot once one is approved and available.
“Every individual has the right to their own choices, but it’s obvious from our numbers that the coronavirus hasn’t been defeated, and you can trust that it isn’t finished with America and the world as yet,” Johnson said.
“Black Americans especially need to stay abreast of the most essential information, and faithfully adhere to the CDC guidelines if we expect to truly protect ourselves, as well as our friends and families and help all recover.”