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Poll Shows NJ Communities of Color More Willing to Get Vaccine

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People of color in New Jersey are warming to the idea of getting vaccinated against Covid.

A new poll commissioned by the Newark-based non-profit Project Ready shows more Black and Hispanic voters willing to get the vaccine than in a similar poll in February.

The poll shows 69% of Black voters willing to get the shot, up from 62% in February, and a similar rise among Hispanic voters – 83% now say they will be vaccinated.

In Newark, the results were even more dramatic, with 84% saying they have or would definitely get the vaccine, while only 16% said they definitely or likely would not.

Nayibe Capellan of Project Ready said it seems it just took time.

“More and more people are seeing that there are people getting the vaccine and they’re walking away fine with the results of either not catching Covid or not having severe side effects,” she said, “so I think they’re more comfortable in getting the vaccine.”

She said seeing familiar, trusted faces taking the shot helps too.

“If you see your neighbors doing it, if you see the faith-based community doing it, if you see your family members, your grandma and your grandpa getting the shot in the arm, you’re more likely to do it,” she said.

Capellan said messaging also plays a big part. “We’ve seen a lot of campaigns and a lot of messaging around ‘trust the science’ and also have incredible messengers go out and get the shot in the arm, so that makes people more likely to want to get the vaccine,” she said.

The poll also showed that Black and Hispanic parents were more likely than white parents to say they would vaccinate their children.

But it did not show that CDC guidance allowing the vaccinated to go without masks had a significant effect on willingness to be vaccinated.

Janice Kirkel is a lifelong award-winning journalist who has done everything from network newscasts to national and local sports reports to business newscasts to specialized reporting and editing in technical areas of business and finance such as bankruptcy, capital structure changes and reporting on the business of the investment business.