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Notable Black Anti-Vaxxers Who Won't Endorse The COVID-19 Vaccine

[caption id="attachment_4208758" align="aligncenter" width="832"] Lenox Hill Hospital Chair of Emergency Medicine Yves Duroseau receives the COVID-19 vaccine from Doctor Michelle Chester at Long Island Jewish Medical Center on December 14, 2020, in New Hyde Park on Long Island, New York. | Source: Scott Heins / Getty[/caption] UPDATED: 5:45 p.m. ET, Oct . 35 Originally published Sept. 14 Public health officials have said they need all hands on deck to promote the COVID-19 vaccine. But when those hands are attached to celebrities' Twitter fingers, there's no telling what kind of messages about the pandemic, let alone the vaccine, will be posted for their legions of loyal followers to heed blindly. And while prominent right-wing, conservative Republicans who are white have largely been the face of COVID-19 misinformation and vaccine hesitancy and skepticism, lately, there is a growing number of notable Black people have been similarly embracing a school of thought that questions not only the vaccine but also its true intentions, its effectiveness as well as the possibility of life-altering side effects; suspicions that have been widely and readily debunked as conspiracy theories. Athletes and entertainers who have millions of fans around the world have especially revealed themselves to be among the most outspoken when it comes to the COVID-19 vaccine. But it's far from just limited to them, as there are Black politicians, public figures and celebrities who are equally doing their part to cast doubt on the vaccine, which public health officials say is crucial to bringing the pandemic under control. In a similar yet decidedly different instance of the type of influence a celebrity and well-known people can wield, it wasn't that long ago when then-lame duck President Donald Trump and his cronies inspired a throng of angry and violent white supremacists to illegally break into the U.S. Capitol in a deadly act of treason. It was all based on misinformation that spread a "big lie." It's a little bit more complicated with similarly well-known people refusing to endorse the vaccine. Yes, like Jan. 6, their followers are listening and likely ready to heed their word, no matter how flawed. But unlike Jan. 6, the vaccine skepticism knows no political boundary. White conservatives may be the face of anti-vaxxers, but the truth is there are plenty of Black folks who are just as hesitant -- albeit likely not solely for politically motivated for reasons. A lot of those Black folks are highly recognizable and influential people, something that makes their hesitance to endorse the COVID-19 vaccine that much more confounding for public health officials urging vaccinations at all cost. But in the COVID-19 era with an unprecedented pandemic that is killing people of all ages and backgrounds and social statuses, the words about the vaccine from these famous Black folks may hit their fans and supporters a little different and allow them to more readily accept misinformation without doing any research for themselves. This below list couldn't possibly document every single instance of a notable Black person who won't publicly endorse the COVID-19 vaccine. Still, it would be naive to underestimate the reach of their collective words, no matter the topic.