By BlackPressUSA Staff

Secretary Becerra comes to Florida to Highlight the Biden-Harris Administration’s Support for Vaccine Confidence, COVID-19 Testing, and Frontline Workers

Roundtable Discussion Streamed on Instagram Live (@Black Men Engaged)

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The Honorable Xavier Becerra, U.S. Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) along with Black Men Engaged, and Jacksonville community leaders met to highlight the Biden-Harris Administration’s support for the community and Covid-19 vaccine confidence in Jacksonville, Florida, on Friday, Feb. 18.

“Community organizations, such as Black Men Engaged, are vital to advancing the health and wellbeing of America,” said Secretary Xavier Becerra, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. “From its leadership, to its volunteers, and everyone in between, Black Men Engaged has worked tirelessly to promote the importance of vaccinations against Covid-19. And their efforts have paid off. Today, nearly 600,000 people in Duval county are vaccinated.”

Secretary Becerra began his trip at a canvas launch with Black Men Engaged, which has partnered with the HHS Covid-19 Vaccine Public Education Campaign to boost vaccine confidence through grassroots organizing. After a community meet and greet, he hosted a roundtable discussion on the importance of engaging trusted messengers in the vaccination effort.

“Over the past few months since we’ve been here in Jacksonville, we’ve interacted with about 70,000 people, and we’ve seen a seven percent increase in vaccination rates,” said Khalil Thompson, Executive Director of Black Men Engaged. “We also conducted local focus groups before we even started this work, to better understand the reluctance behind why Black people didn’t get vaccinated. The strongest messages resonate around the family and protecting the community. By focusing on that message, we want to make sure there’s no one left behind.”

Following the roundtable, Secretary Becerra toured a testing site organized by Black Men Engaged and discussed the Biden-Harris Administration’s emphasis on testing access as part of the ‘whole-of-government’ Covid-19 response.

Photo album available here. Credit: Black Men Engaged/Krown Media.
For questions, contact press@blackmenengaged.org.

Participants include:

• U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Secretary Xavier Becerra
• Executive Director, Black Men Engaged, Khalil Thompson
• U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Deric Gilliard, MA
• State Representative, Angie Nixon (D – 14th District)
• City Council President, Samuel Newby City Councilman, Reggie Gaffney
• City Councilwoman, JuCoby Pittman
• City Councilman, Garrett Dennis
• School Board Chairman, Darryl Willie
• School Board Member, Warren Jones
• Faith Member, Pastor Ardel Jones
• Faith Member, Rev. Dr. Nahshon Nicks
• Faith Member, Elder Lee Harris
• Director of School Board Police, Greg Burton
• Health Planning Council of Northeast Florida, Inc., Joyce Case
• Florida Covid Task Force Member, Tony Hill
• COJ Covid Task Force Member, Charles Griggs
• Elder Source Task Force, Tameka Gaines Holly
• Schultzbacher Board Chair, Darnell Smith
• President of Northeast Florida Medical Society, Dr. Keyatta Lee
• Agape CEO & Former State Rep, Mia Jones
• NAACP Committee Chairman, James Morton
• Business Owner, Mincy Pollock
• Congressman Al Lawson’s Office, Kourtney Wesley

About Black Men Engaged

Black Men Engaged’s sole mission, is to meet black men where they are with vital social programs that focus on issues that affect underserved communities of color. Black Men Engaged has the unique ability to bridge the cultural divide with outside stakeholders and grassroots as well as grasstop leaders in the black male community. Black Men Engaged is a 501c3 organization. Black Health Matters is an event series highlighting the achievements of Black medical professionals and aimed at addressing the misinformation about Covid-19 in African-American communities.

About the We Can Do This

The Health and Human Services Covid-19 public education campaign is a national initiative to increase public confidence in and uptake of Covid-19 vaccines while reinforcing basic prevention measures such as mask-wearing and social distancing. Through a nationwide network of trusted messengers and consistent, fact-based public health messaging, the campaign helps the public make informed decisions about their health and Covid-19, including steps to protect themselves and their communities. The effort is driven by communication science and provides tailored information for at-risk groups.