Cutting through the noise

A disparity in attitudes towards receiving the Covid-19 vaccines has emerged in the UK between white and Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) communities.

A report by the Royal Society for Public Health (RSPH), first published in December 2020, showed that only 57 per cent of respondents from BAME communities would receive the vaccine when offered compared to 79 per cent of white respondents.

One major reason behind this disparity has been the targeted use of misinformation which has deterred members of specific communities from taking the vaccine. This was confirmed by the chief executive of RSPH, Christina Marriott, who stated on the report: “Anti-vaccination messages have been specifically targeted at different groups, including different ethnic or religious communities.”

The South Asian community of the UK has been singled out as being particularly vulnerable to misinformation surrounding the vaccines, particularly over the contents of the approved vaccines. Fears have emerged that the vaccines might contain meat products, causing concerns among Muslims that they might not be halal or among Hindus that they might contain beef. This misinformation has been rapidly shared online and via WhatsApp.

As Marriott also emphasised, ethnic groups, including those among the South Asian community, have been generally more at risk throughout the pandemic and therefore there is a duty incumbent upon government and officials to tackle misinformation to ensure that these groups are equally as protected as their white counterparts.

The response to date has been admirable. The NHS has stated online on a page dedicated to the Covid-19 vaccines that the “approved NHS vaccines do not contain any animal products or egg”. Thus, neither Muslims nor Hindus should worry about the religious implications of taking the vaccine.

This message has been reiterated by faith leaders, most notably by imams across the UK who are emphasising in Jummah sermons that the vaccine is not only halal but that to receive the vaccine is an ethical duty in the protection of ourselves and those around us.

Beyond the primary reason of ensuring the wellbeing of their congregations, imams are having to allude to the fact that the failure of Muslims to take the vaccine would result in increased demonisation by other groups in society.

Imam Qari Asim MBE, the Chair of the Mosques and Imams National Advisory Board, wrote in an article on Imams Online that “we do not want to fan the flames of Islamophobia and give rise to scapegoating communities…” This scapegoating has become an international phenomenon throughout the pandemic, manifested in Islamophobic conspiracy theories which hold Muslim communities as solely responsible for the transmission of Covid-19.

Other imams have taken to posting pictures on social media of them receiving the vaccine to encourage other Muslims to do the same. Ghafoor Ahmed Chisti Sahib, the head imam of the Bahu Trust UK, is one such case of leading by example.

A positive effort has also been spearheaded by the BBC, which is now producing advice videos through the BBC Asian Network in South Asian languages (Urdu, Punjabi, Sylheti, Gujarati and Tamil) to ensure that the South Asian community has a greater understanding of the safety and effectiveness of the approved vaccines.

Some of the backlash on social media against this initiative exemplifies the true illnesses within our society: ignorance and intolerance. Any decent human being should welcome initiatives which work to widen access to public health information, especially given the sacrifices made by the South Asian community to our NHS.

With this in mind, it was such a delight to hear Qasa Alom, journalist on the BBC Asian Network, talk to his British-Bengali mother on-air about her not only receiving the vaccine but also about her job as a midwife. The airing of such cases will inevitably lead to greater trust in the vaccinations.

Furthermore, leaders should follow in the footsteps of His Excellency the High Commissioner of Pakistan, Moazzam Ahmad Khan, who has encouraged members of the UK’s Pakistani diaspora to take the vaccine when they are invited to do so. For diasporas often look to their leaders in times of despair and crisis.

Unfortunately, we have to keep reminding one another to listen to the experts, as those who spread misinformation are not experts nor have our best interests at heart. So, to those who have the influence to do so, encourage members of your community and those of others to receive the approved vaccinations. Only then can we look forward to embracing one another again.

The writer, now working as a researcher and analyst, will soon

be undertaking a PhD. She tweets @MaryFloraHunter