Carter G Woodson Annual Report

and geographic inequities. CGW is comprised of men who are all members of racial and ethnic minority populations. As an organization developed to serve the marginalized and disenfranchised, we stand in the best position to serve those populations, as we are those populations. We were afraid of the potential death toll that could result among African American people if they were not vaccinated and we wanted to help increase knowledge, trust, access, and actual testing and vaccination rates. ” It is important to note that African Americans do not trust “the systems” that have routinely and consistently disrespected them and denied them opportunity and access to “the American Dream.” If your desire is to reach African American families and individuals, you will need people that they know, trust, and respect. CGW has served the greater Madison area faithfully for over 26 years. We are well-known, highly regarded, and genuinely respected. Every member of our organization holds a bachelor’s degree or higher. Therefore, we were in the best position to carry forth the message that all should be vaccinated and that it is indeed safe. African Americanboys are among some of the

most underemployed demographic in the Madison area. We increased our organizations workforce by employing and training young men that are already engaged in our Woodson Boys Club Mentoring Program to disseminate flyers, brochures, and other relevant information within their communities. Together, we planned to go door-todoor to safely discuss at a distance, the importance of COVID testing and vaccination(s). With our online presence already established, we will post COVID information on our website and all our social media platforms. We also encouraged our Community Partners to also post COVID information on their websites and social media platforms. CGW has utilized its listofhundredsof contacts in the community to send routine emails, text messages, and make telephone calls to families and individuals to share COVID information. Furthermore, we transported the elderly and those with transportation barriers to COVID testing and vaccination sites. We firmly believed that the efforts would indeed “increase knowledge and awareness of COVID-19 and vaccines and facilitate downstream improvements in COVID-19 vaccination rates and the disparities that exist in these rates.” Towards those ends, the Foundation

partnered with Today Not Tomorrow for Commercials and broadcast on TNT re covid vaccination. We had student employees assisting with learning new skills regarding the entertainment industry all while assisting with education regarding the importance of the vaccination. This included employing individuals to edit video, film, assist with filming, organize venues, scripts, contracts, etc. Additionally, we registered individuals for vaccinations and Covid testing. We provided for the costs for venue, employees, organization, and providing a safe space with educators regarding vaccination. We also provided incentives for vaccinated individuals by issuing Metro Bus Passes and individual Kwik Trip Gas Cards.

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