Ethnic Conflict about the Administration of Coronavirus Vaccine after its Discovery - Essay Example

Ethnic conflict refers to a disagreement between two or more ethnic groups due to political, social, economic, or religious issues. It may occur between people from different races or groups. Currently, the world is experiencing the Covid-19 pandemic, which has brought a stand to almost all usual activities. The United States has been affected the most, among other countries. As such, through government funding, medical research agencies have put in multiple efforts to identify a vaccine that can be used to eradicate the virus. However, debates about who should get the virus first once it hits the market have hit all platforms, leading to ethnic conflicts in the United States.

Summary of the Article

The New York Times article, “Who Gets a Vaccine First? US Considers Race in Coronavirus Plans," discusses how ethnic conflict can affect the vaccine of US citizens when the vaccine is discovered. According to the article, the White race has had more privileges than Blacks and Latinos in the United States in most fields, including healthcare (The New York Times, 2020). As such, whites are likely to access the vaccine once it is discovered before other minority races. However, the prevalence of coronavirus infection is three times more in African-Americans and Latinos as it is among whites. Besides, the death rate due to Covid-19 is nearly twice among Blacks and Latinos. Dr. Sharon Frey claims that Blacks and Latinos should be put in the higher tier during the vaccine phase. However, Claire Hannan, executive director of the Association of Immunization Managers, claims that giving the vaccine to one race first will arouse different views from the public, which might lead to ethnic conflicts.

Since it is clear that Blacks and Latinos are more vulnerable to Covid-19 than whites, Dr. Schmidt suggests that the African-Americans and Latinos should be given a chance to receive the vaccine in the top tier. In this case, those at a higher risk of infection should be considered first in both races, i.e., the elderly and those with advanced illnesses. Still, the idea of excluding Blacks and Latinos from the top tier can raise concerns from different parties, including the international community.

Importance of the Issue to the Global Community

The issue of favoring all races during vaccination of coronavirus is of great importance both in the United States and worldwide. Firstly, giving the vaccine to the most affected race will lower the rate spread of the virus to people across all races. As shown earlier, Blacks and Latinos are the most affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. Statistics also show that the two races consist of people who live under low socioeconomic. As such, they are more likely to suffer from opportunistic and advanced illnesses that increase the risk of coronavirus infection. Therefore, putting people from the two races at the top tier will prevent the enormous spread of coronavirus in the United States and other countries.

Secondly, failure to include all the minority ethnic groups at the top tier while giving initial coronavirus vaccine will expose the US as a racist country to the global community. Being the country with most citizens from different races, the country needs to treat each of them fairly to avoid negative attention from the global world. Besides, the United States is among the most developed countries, and so it attracts attention from all countries in the world. Therefore, a failure to address the issue of the Covid-19 pandemic effectively will expose its weaknesses. As a result, it may lose allies from countries whose major population consists of despised citizens.

Lastly, solving the issue of racism will bring a positive impact on the global community. First of all, positive results in people from all races after giving them the vaccine will confirm that the vaccine can be effective in treating people from all races of the world. As such, the vaccine will be processed in plenty so that it can be transported to all affected countries. In return, the global economy will open up again, and this enhances stable trade. Also, involving all races in vaccine administration will attract attention from different countries who will then send their workers to the United States so that they can be partners, and this improves economies of both countries.

Outside Influences to Change the Issue

The issue of ethnic conflict in giving coronavirus vaccines can attract a lot of concerns from different parties. First of all, worldwide campaigns against racial discrimination can help the United States to change the approach towards vaccination. For example, the "Black Lives Matter" campaign has received much support from individuals from different countries. In this case, ignoring the minor races during vaccination can as well lead to such campaigns, which can force the country to change the vaccination approaches. Secondly, official agencies and institutions can as well influence the change in the irrational vaccination approach. For example, the International Movement Against Discrimination and Racism (IMADR) fights against all forms of discrimination and racism (Bryant-Davis & Tummala-Narra, 2017). Hence, it can enhance the change in ethnic conflicts in all countries.

Also, healthcare agencies such as the World Health Organization and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention can influence the change in the issue of racial discrimination during vaccination. The mentioned agencies carry out a lot of research in health, including on how vaccines should be administered. As such, their contribution will greatly change the idea of giving vaccines to the majority race and leaving out the minority races that are more vulnerable to Covid-19.

The Neutrality of the Article

The discussed article is neutral. First of all, it clearly expounds on the issue of the race that should receive the coronavirus vaccine first. Besides, it outlines the implications of favoring the white race, which is not severely affected by the Covid-19 pandemic and ignoring Blacks and Latinos. Furthermore, the article does not criticize any of the raised claims. Instead, it gives recommendations on what should be done to limit the spread of coronavirus after the discovery of a vaccine.

Conclusion

In conclusion, ethnic conflict in the United States exists among majority and minority, whereby the minority races undergo discrimination in different fields, including healthcare. However, the reviewed article explains how ethnic conflict can affect the spread of Covid-19 in the United States. The country needs to consider each race, depending on how the virus has affected them. As such, Blacks and Latinos should be put in the top tier during the vaccination process to examine whether the processed vaccine can treat manage the pandemic in all races.