LYNN — With COVID-19 cases rising across the country and variants spreading like wildfire, municipalities across the United States are doing everything they can to get the population vaccinated.
On Saturday, the city of Lynn stepped up to do its part. With help from Tufts Health Plan, Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, the Lynn Community Health Center, and Girls Inc. Lynn, the COVID-19 vaccine was brought to communities that needed it most, particularly Black and Brown communities and non-English speaking populations at a summer festival
The festival served as an opportunity for individuals to learn about the vaccine and get vaccinated, while also connecting with the greater Lynn community. State Rep. Peter Capano (D-Lynn) was present at the event and said he thinks it’s important for community members to talk about the vaccine.
“I think it’s very important because there’s a lot of misinformation out there and a lot of it is not based on science,” said Capano. “Unfortunately, the issue has become political in some ways.”
The state representative continued, adding that events like the one held Saturday have realistic conversations compared to “a Fox News blast about how dangerous the vaccine is.”
Besides the opportunity to get vaccinated, various food options were available, including free popcorn and snow cones.
Syeeda Rahman, community engagement coordinator at Archipelago Strategies Group, said that bringing the vaccine to people who need it is the most important thing being done by ASG. Besides the festival, the company also has canvassers going out to communities to ensure that people who might not have access to the vaccine can find access and places to get vaccinated.
Rahman said she hoped that, with there being other events surrounding the vaccination clinic, more people would decide to get their shot.
“Research has shown that if vaccination is available at an event that someone would already be at, they are a lot more likely to get a vaccine,” she said, “so we’re trying to create a fun atmosphere to make sure that people just want to come and then they hopefully get the vaccine in the process.”
Capano also expressed how crucial it was to make the vaccine available to everyone at the event on Saturday.
“The more people that are vaccinated, the more chance we have of diminishing the chance of the variant spreading,” Capano said.
U.S. Sen. Ed Markey applauded the Lynn event as something that the whole nation should strive for.
“For a vaccine program to be successful, you have to go where people live, where people shop, where people play,” said Markey. “What Lynn is doing today is making it attractive for Lynn residents to come and get a shot. That’s really at the core of what every community should be doing, so Lynn is setting up a model here for understanding the community (and) knowing how to invite the community to a setting that they all should feel comfortable in attending and ultimately getting a shot.”
