Dr. Anthony Fauci, the leading infectious disease doctor and director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, addressed the African American community\u2019s fears of accepting the new coronavirus vaccine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cTo my African American brothers and sisters \u2026 this vaccine that you\u2019re gonna be taking was developed by an African American woman. And that is just a fact,\u201d Fauci proclaimed during a recent National Urban League event.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Fauci noted that Dr. Kizzmekia Corbett, a Black woman, has been at the forefront of the vaccine process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He added that it is vital to recognize the U.S.\u2019s history of racism that\u2019s led to great mistrust from the Black community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Fauci exclaimed that the vaccine is safe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe very vaccine that\u2019s one of the two that has absolutely exquisite levels \u2013 94 to 95 percent efficacy against clinical disease and almost 100 percent efficacy against serious disease that are shown to be clearly safe \u2013 that vaccine was actually developed in my institute\u2019s vaccine research center by a team of scientists led by Dr. Barney Graham and his close colleague, Dr. Kizzmekia Corbett, or Kizzy Corbett,\u201d Fauci stated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Corbett, 34, is an accomplished research fellow and the scientific lead for the Coronavirus Vaccines & Immunopathogenesis Team at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Vaccine Research Center (VRC).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to her biography, Corbett received a B.S. in Biological Sciences, with a secondary major in Sociology, in 2008 from the University of Maryland \u2013 Baltimore County, where she was a Meyerhoff Scholar and an NIH undergraduate scholar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She then enrolled at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she obtained her Ph.D. in Microbiology and Immunology in 2014.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A viral immunologist by training, Corbett is known for using her expertise to propel novel vaccine development for pandemic preparedness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Appointed to the VRC in 2014, her work focuses on developing novel coronavirus vaccines.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Corbett has 15 years of expertise studying dengue virus, respiratory syncytial virus, influenza virus, and coronaviruses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Along with her research activities, Corbett is an active member of the NIH Fellows Committee and an avid advocator of STEM education and vaccine awareness in the community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHistory books will celebrate the name and achievements of Dr. Kizzmekia Corbett, the Black Woman who was the leader in developing the COVID-19 Vaccine,\u201d Barbara Arnwine, president and founder of Transformative Justice Coalition, wrote on Twitter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cShe developed the specific scientific approach to mitigating the coronavirus.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
COVID-19 has disproportionately affected African Americans, who make up a large percentage of the more than 290,000 U.S. residents to die from the virus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
One study released by the COVID Collaborative<\/a>, the NAACP<\/a> and UnidosUS<\/a> revealed that 14 percent of Black Americans trust a vaccine will be safe, and 18 percent trust it will be effective.<\/p>\n\n\n\n