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Black Women’s Health Imperative Launches Covid-19 Vaccine Campaign with $400,000 Rockefeller Foundation Grant

Published

3 years ago

May 27, 2021

The Black Women’s Health Imperative (BWHI) announced that it has received a $400,000 grant from the Rockefeller Foundation to improve vaccination rates among Black women and communities of color.

The grant is part of The Rockefeller Foundation’s $20 million Equity-First Vaccination Initiative, which supports hyper-local, community-led programs to improve vaccine access and support educational outreach in five cities. Learnings from the initiative will help inform strategies across the country to increase access to Covid-19 vaccinations in communities of color, contributing to a collective, national north star goal of ensuring at least 70 million people of color will be fully vaccinated by July 2021.

“Throughout the pandemic, the disparities in health, economic, and social outcomes have been stark for Black women and their families,” said Linda Goler Blount, president and CEO of the Black Women’s Health Imperative. “This grant will help us equip Black women with science-based information so that they’re empowered to educate their families, friends and communities about the Covid-19 vaccines.”

BWHI will form strategic partnerships with the National Caucus & Center on Black Aging (NCBA) and National Coalition of 100 Black Women (NCBW) to launch Covid-19 vaccine and equity initiatives in Baltimore, Md.; Chicago, Ill.; Houston, Texas; Newark, N.J.; Oakland, Calif. Community organizations, the Southern Christian Leadership Global Policy Initiative, and R.E.A.C.H. Beyond Solutions, as well as the New Jersey Department of Health, will support.

Professional athletes with the Women’s National Basketball Players Association will also collaborate with the BWHI to support this public health campaign across their fanbases and within their communities by encouraging vaccine education, awareness, and advocating for equitable access.

BWHI will convene a Covid-19 Vaccine Awareness & Equity Task Force to provide high-impact advocacy recommendations to boost Covid-19 vaccine uptake. The task force will include the leaders of NCBA and NCBW, policymakers, disparities experts, and community organizations.

“We’re excited to partner with Black Women’s Health Imperative to address vaccine equity in our communities,” said Karyne Jones, president and CEO of NCBA. “African American adults 60 and over have been hardest hit by Covid-19. We want to make sure they understand that vaccines are safe and effective – and will enable them to get back to enjoying life with their families.”

“We’re committed to meeting people where they are in order to remove barriers to vaccination, reduce hesitancy, and empower people to live, work and assemble without fear,” said Virginia W. Harris, NCBW national president.

“We are thrilled to partner with BWHI because Black women are important influencers with their families and in their communities more broadly. Together, we can help ensure every community has credible information about the Covid-19 vaccines,” said Rhea Boyd, MD, who co-developed “THE CONVERSATION: Between Us, About Us.”

“The heavy toll of Covid-19 on Black America is sharpened for Black women, who bear the brunt of health, economic, and social disparities,” said Greg Johnson, managing director of the Equity and Economic Opportunity Initiative at the Rockefeller Foundation. “The Rockefeller Foundation is thrilled to be supporting Black Women’s Health Imperative so that Black women and their families feel confident about why and how to get the Covid-19 vaccine.”

Mia Lane

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Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024

Published

4 days ago

April 26, 2024

Oakland Post

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Oakland Post: Week of April 17 – 23, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of April 17 – 23, 2024

Published

2 weeks ago

April 19, 2024

Oakland Post

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Oakland Schools Honor Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties

Every Jan. 30, OUSD commemorates the legacy of Fred Korematsu, an Oakland native, a Castlemont High School graduate, and a national symbol of resistance, resilience, and justice. His defiant stand against racial injustice and his unwavering commitment to civil rights continue to inspire the local community and the nation. Tuesday was “Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties and the Constitution” in the state of California and a growing number of states across the country.

Published

2 weeks ago

April 19, 2024

Oakland Post

Fred Korematsu. Courtesy of OUSD.

By Post Staff

Every Jan. 30, OUSD commemorates the legacy of Fred Korematsu, an Oakland native, a Castlemont High School graduate, and a national symbol of resistance, resilience, and justice.

His defiant stand against racial injustice and his unwavering commitment to civil rights continue to inspire the local community and the nation. Tuesday was “Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties and the Constitution” in the state of California and a growing number of states across the country.
One OUSD school is named in his honor: Fred T. Korematsu Discovery Academy (KDA) elementary in East Oakland.

Several years ago, founding KDA Principal Charles Wilson, in a video interview with anti-hate organization “Not In Our Town,” said, “We chose the name Fred Korematsu because we really felt like the attributes that he showed in his work are things that the children need to learn … that common people can stand up and make differences in a large number of people’s lives.”

Fred Korematsu was born in Oakland on Jan. 30, 1919. His parents ran a floral nursery business, and his upbringing in Oakland shaped his worldview. His belief in the importance of standing up for your rights and the rights of others, regardless of race or background, was the foundation for his activism against racial prejudice and for the rights of Japanese Americans during World War II.

At the start of the war, Korematsu was turned away from enlisting in the National Guard and the Coast Guard because of his race. He trained as a welder, working at the docks in Oakland, but was fired after the bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941. Fear and prejudice led to federal Executive Order 9066, which forced more than 120,000 Japanese Americans out of their homes and neighborhoods and into remote internment camps.

The 23-year-old Korematsu resisted the order. He underwent cosmetic surgery and assumed a false identity, choosing freedom over unjust imprisonment. His later arrest and conviction sparked a legal battle that would challenge the foundation of civil liberties in America.

Korematsu’s fight culminated in the Supreme Court’s initial ruling against him in 1944. He spent years in a Utah internment camp with his family, followed by time living in Salt Lake City where he was dogged by racism.

In 1976, President Gerald Ford overturned Executive Order 9066. Seven years later, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco vacated Korematsu’s conviction. He said in court, “I would like to see the government admit that they were wrong and do something about it so this will never happen again to any American citizen of any race, creed, or color.”

Korematsu’s dedication and determination established him as a national icon of civil rights and social justice. He advocated for justice with Rosa Parks. In 1998, President Bill Clinton gave him the Presidential Medal of Freedom saying, “In the long history of our country’s constant search for justice, some names of ordinary citizens stand for millions of souls … To that distinguished list, today we add the name of Fred Korematsu.”

After Sept. 11, 2001, Korematsu spoke out against hatred and discrimination, saying what happened to Japanese Americans should not happen to people of Middle Eastern descent.
Korematsu’s roots in Oakland and his education in OUSD are a source of great pride for the city, according to the school district. His most famous quote, which is on the Korematsu elementary school mural, is as relevant now as ever, “If you have the feeling that something is wrong, don’t be afraid to speak up.”