KQED is a proud member of
Save ArticleSave Article
upper waypoint
The Bay

We’re Learning the Wrong Lessons from the Tuskegee Experiment. That Matters for Vaccinating Black Americans

Devin KatayamaApril DemboskyEricka Cruz GuevarraAlan Montecillo
Save ArticleSave Article
Failed to save article

Please try again

A group of men who were involved in the Tuskegee Experiment.  (Public Domain)

Several surveys show that Black Americans are, on average, more hesitant to receive a COVID-19 vaccine compared with white people. And when it comes to Black communities showing less trust in the health care system overall, many journalists, politicians and experts point to one specific historical incident: the Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment.

But many people, including KQED reporter April Dembosky, are worried that Tuskegee has become a scapegoat for the many structural inequities in the health care system today. And it has real implications right now, especially for Black people who are disproportionately dying from COVID-19.

Guest: April Dembosky, KQED health correspondent


Episode trasncript here. Subscribe to our newsletter here.

Sponsored

lower waypoint
next waypoint
Why California Environmentalists Are Divided Over Plan to Change Power Utility RatesWhy Renaming Oakland's Airport Is a Big DealAllegations of Prosecutorial Bias Spark Review of Death Penalty Convictions in Alameda CountyCecil Williams, Legendary Pastor of Glide Church, Dies at 94Nurses Warn Patient Safety at Risk as AI Use Spreads in Health CareSF Democratic Party’s Support of Unlimited Housing Could Pressure Mayoral CandidatesBay Area Indians Brace for India’s Pivotal 2024 Election: Here’s What to Know‘Sweeps Kill’: Bay Area Homeless Advocates Weigh in on Pivotal US Supreme Court CaseCalifornia’s Future Educators Divided on How to Teach ReadingWhen Rivers Caught Fire: A Brief History of Earth Day