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Dec. 25-Dec. 31, 2020
‘I HAVE LITTLE DOUBT ABOUT IT’
Local high school students speak out about arrival of COVID-19 vaccine
A woman receives a Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine shot. Victoria Jones/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo
Vol. 29 No. 52 32 total pages
BY ERIN YOON
As COVID-19 cases once
again surge in Queens, the
FDA-approved Pfizer COVID-
19 vaccine is bringing hope
to a borough once home to the
epicenter of the pandemic.
Many believe the vaccine’s
creation signals a bright future.
Though some express
skepticism toward its hurried
production, countless studies
have shown the vaccine to
be effective and safe in clinical
trials. Beyond an allergic
reaction in one person in the
United States, there have been
no adverse events reported.
Queens high school students
demonstrated polarity
within their views of the vaccine
upon being asked whether
they would take it or not.
“I would take it once I’m
sure there are no harmful
side effects so I can play sports
again,” said Justin Lau, a student
at Benjamin N. Cardozo
High School. “But if I was not
sure about the safety of the
vaccine, I would not take it
since personal health is a bigger
priority.”
The vaccine feels like a
risk, he continued, especially
because its creation process
was so rushed. It is impossible
to know about any long-term
dangers at the moment, according
to Lau.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, director
of the National Institute of
Allergy and Infectious Diseases,
addressed the quick timeframe
in which the vaccine
was created on ABC News’
“Good Morning America” on
Tuesday.
“People understandably are
skeptical about the speed, but
we have to keep emphasizing
speed means the science was
extraordinary,” Fauci said.
At St. John’s Episcopal Hospital
in Far Rockaway, where
vaccinations for frontline
workers began earlier this
week, none of the 175 people
who have received the vaccine
have reported any adverse reaction.
Other Queens students displayed
more optimistic attitudes
regarding the plausibility
of the vaccine.
Samuel Kim, a junior at
Bayside High School who has
been working at a relative’s
store during the pandemic,
looked to the FDA for the vaccine’s
credibility.
“I think it is promising,” he
stated. “The FDA did approve
Pfizer’s vaccine and I have
little doubt about it, although
it is one of the fastest vaccines
to be created.”
However, Kim, like many
others, decided that he would
wait until the vaccine’s safety
was confirmed by a reliable
population. There could be
downsides that are yet to be
known, he said.
Supinder Kaur, a junior at
Benjamin N. Cardozo High
School, told QNS she is eager
to take the vaccine.
“I am hopeful and would
heavily consider taking the
vaccine,” Kaur said.
Kaur asserted that the
FDA’s approval of the vaccine’s
production significantly
bolsters its credibility. Despite
the arrival of the vaccine, she
said that social distancing
should still be maintained in
order to achieve solid progress
in quieting the pandemic.
The vaccine is first being
distributed to frontline healthcare
workers who are most exposed
to the virus.
/QNS.COM
