still doesn’t really change anything. Especially since at the same time we heard about Ma’Khia Bryant. It felt like maybe a sigh of relief, but not like anything actually changed because of it… people were definitely prepared [in case things went left], there were already fliers and signal messages and things just buzzing around, because if that was a non-guilty verdict we were ready to take the streets. And honestly, some people still took the streets because again it was that feeling that it didn’t really change anything in terms of how our people are being policed and how police show up in our community- it doesn’t change that long-term problem we are facing.” ● Are folk getting the covid vaccine? Why or why not? “That is mixed too. I know folks who have taken it, and I know folks who haven’t. Interestingly enough, I folks who were asked to do security for an event that was encouraging Black folks to not take the vaccine. They were sort of comparing this to the many times that we have been experimented on by the medical industry… just general feelings that the vaccine is not safe. I would say initially when the vaccine first rolled out there were a lot of complaints about accessibility; really long lines, seniors having to stand for hours to wait for the vaccine. That definitely seems to be better in terms of overall coordination…I can go in Rite Aid now and see that they are giving out the vaccine. So its mixed; I know people who are like, ‘we need to get it’ and folks who are like ‘naw, I don’t trust the healthcare industry’.” ● What are y’all doing in preparation for Malcolm X Festival? “There normally is a festival here, a committee of folks; not MXGM, we’ve been a part of it but we don’t lead that committee. It is still happening, most of it is going to be virtual and then some smaller things in person. Of course we are gearing up for MXGM’s festival, encouraging people to watch-organizing ‘watch parties’. That’s what we’re doing.”
By Any Means Necessary
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