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Background: Communities of color have been disproportionately impacted by COVID-19. We explored barriers and facilitators to COVID-19 vaccine uptake among African American, Latinx, and African immigrant communities in Washington, DC. Methods: A total of 76 individuals participated in qualitative interviews and focus groups, and 208 individuals from communities of color participated in an online crowdsourcing contest. Results: Findings documented a lack of sufficient, accurate information about COVID-19 vaccines and questions about the science. African American and African immigrant participants spoke about the deeply rooted historical underpinnings to their community’s vaccine hesitancy, citing the prior and ongoing mistreatment of people of color by the medical community. Latinx and African immigrant participants highlighted how limited accessibility played an important role in the slow uptake of COVID-19 vaccines in their communities. Connectedness and solidarity were found to be key assets that can be drawn upon through community-driven responses to address social-structural challenges to COVID-19 related vaccine uptake. Conclusions: The historic and ongoing socio-economic context and realities of communities of color must be understood and respected to inform community-based health communication messaging to support vaccine equity for COVID-19 and other infectious diseases.

There is widespread unawareness and disbelief regarding the evidence-based conclusion that people who have a sustained undetectable HIV viral load cannot sexually transmit HIV—ie, undetectable=untransmittable (U=U). Long-standing, misguided fear about HIV transmission persists; consequently, so does the policing of sexual expression and the penalisation of pleasure faced by people with HIV. Many people with HIV with an undetectable viral load have unnecessarily abstained from condomless sex, avoided serodifferent partnering, and had anxiety about onward sexual transmission due to perceived HIV risk that is now known to be non-existent. Some health professionals have refrained from correcting this misinformation because of concerns that people with HIV will engage in more condomless sex or have more sexual partners upon learning of U=U. Withholding information about U=U is thus rooted in behavioural assumptions and is scientifically unfounded. Moreover, withholding such information violates medical ethics, perpetuates health inequities, and infringes on the sexual health and human rights of people with HIV. Health professionals and the broader public health community have an ethical responsibility to actively address misinformation about HIV transmission and disseminate the U=U message to all people.

The author comments on stereotyping against people who practice goth culture in the U.S. According to the author, the media and society are contributing to how gothic people are treated. The author asserted that people should not be judged because of what they wear or what kind of music they listen to. The author also talked about school shootings.

The article reviews the music release "Tears of Joy," by Tuck and Patti.