Tuskegee, home of the infamous syphilis research, faces skepticism about the COVID vaccine

Lucenia Dan wore masks in Tuskygi, an almost black city where the government once used unprotected African-American men as Guinea pigs in the study of sexually transmitted diseases in the early days of the coronavirus pandemic. I advised people to keep a safe distance.

Now the former mayor of the town has become immortal as a notorious home “Tuskegee syphilis experiment” I am wary of being vaccinated against COVID-19. In particular, she suspects that the government is promoting vaccines developed at record speeds that may not be able to carry out proper virus testing or consistently provide quality local health care. I am.

“I’m not currently vaccinated with this vaccine. That doesn’t mean I’m never going to do it. But enough to refrain from getting it until I know everything involved. I know, “said Dan, who is black.

Coronavirus vaccination campaigns have made a volatile start in Tuskegee and other parts of Macon County. Local leaders have pointed out distrust of government promises and resistance among residents caused by decades of unsuccessful health programs. Many of the 8,500 people in the city have relatives who have undergone unethical government experiments during the study of syphilis.

“It influences decisions. I was in this community and grew up in this community, so if I didn’t say that, I wouldn’t be very true,” said Frank, Emergency Management Director, Macon County.・ Lee said. Lee is black.

Health experts emphasize both the safety and efficacy of vaccines. They say the vaccine was developed at record speed, but is based on decades of previous research. Vaccines used in the United States show no signs of serious side effects in studies of tens of thousands of people. In addition, more than 26 million vaccinations have been carried out in the United States alone so far, and no danger signal has been reported.

Tuskegee is not a complete outlier.Recently Research As of November, only 59% of the U.S. will be vaccinated within a year, and only 33% want to be vaccinated as soon as possible, according to telecommunications company Edelman. I think.

However, skepticism seems to be deepening here.

Beginning in 1932, government health workers infected Tuskegee and surrounding Macon counties with syphilis so that doctors could track down the disease when Alabama and other parts of the south were still racially isolated. I withheld the treatment of an unprotected man. The study, which included about 600 men, was completed in 1972. clearly By Associated Press.

A $ 9 million settlement was reached after a lawsuit filed by black Tuskegee lawyer Fred Gray on behalf of a man, and in 1997 President Bill Clinton formally apologized on behalf of the US government. Tuskegee: According to a December survey, 40% of blacks across the country say they don’t take the coronavirus vaccine. Even if African Americans are disproportionately beaten by the virus, such hesitation is more established than among whites.

Nation of Islam, a Chicago-based black nationalist group, warns members across the country in an online presentation entitled “Beyond Tuskegee: Why Blacks Should Not Be Vaccinated with Experimental COVID-19” ..

Gray, who is now 90 years old and has legal affairs in Tuskegee, refuses such a comparison.Syphilis research and COVID-19 vaccine are completely different, he Said.. He fully believes that he has been vaccinated himself and publicly encourages others to do the same.

Georgette Moon has a similar mission. A former city council member recently exposed his arms and vaccinated a public health nurse in hopes of protecting himself and encouraging his grumpy friends. Now, Moon said it would be great if more fellow black residents could overcome their protracted fears and get the vaccine.

“Research is a big factor,” Moon said. “I have told very qualified and well-educated people that I am not going to take it now.”

The Macon County Health Department, which administers a two-stage Moderna vaccine in a modern building near downtown, can be vaccinated as many as 160 times a day, officials said. However, during the first 6 days of the appointment, up to 140 people were vaccinated on any day, and a total of 527 people were vaccinated during that period. Healthcare workers, rescue workers, and caregivers are now eligible to shoot in Alabama with people over the age of 75.

There are some signs of hope. According to state statistics, the number of people vaccinated is slowly increasing, and the word that vaccination is okay is pervading the entire community.

The Tuskegee Veterans Hospital, down the street from the county clinic, immunizes veterans aged 65 and over. Only 40% of Veterans Affairs workers in the area are vaccinated, but officials said more people agreed to the shot than during the first wave.

“They know people who have been vaccinated and will hear more about the vaccine and be more comfortable,” said Dr. April Truette, a doctor of infectious diseases in the hospital.

Rev. John Curry, Jr., said he and his wife took pictures after the Department of Health said they could make reservations without waiting for a long time. Curry, the oldest black church minister in town, said he was recommending the congregation to be vaccinated.

Still, he said he understands the protracted power of distrust in towns that is forever associated with syphilis research, one of the most abusive episodes of US public health history.

“That’s a drawback of Tuskegee,” he said. “It depends on people’s hearts.”