PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) — The pandemic has exposed systemic and generational disparities that have harmed the minority community. In Gloucester, with a Black population of only 8%, the local NAACP says disparities have also been exposed in the ways we’re trying to end the pandemic.

For many elderly and high-risk minorities in Gloucester and surrounding areas, vaccine information on the superhighway is a dead end. They don’t use computers or digital devices, so they call the nation’s oldest civil rights organization, the NAACP.

Brenda Dixon, a registered nurse, is president of the Gloucester chapter. She takes their calls day and night.

Gloucester NAACP President Brenda Dixon (Photo courtesy: Brenda Dixon)

“85-year-olds are calling me, 87-year-olds, 70-year-olds are calling me. All of them are elderly and they are desperate for this vaccine. A disproportionate number of minorities have comorbidities which increase the risk of serious illness and death for those exposed to the deadly coronavirus.

“It will just make your heart break. Stories of diabetes, amputation, high-risk people, multiple sclerosis. One man was paralyzed from the waist down,” said Dixon.

One of 13 churches that spreads the word for those without digital devices (Photo courtesy: Brenda Dixon)

Dixon says initially, she was met with resistance from county officials but after two months of negotiations, she was able to partner with Three Rivers Health District and Riverside Health to set up a COVID-19 vaccination clinic for 150 minority community members. Dixon says she could use another 150 vaccines, as all slots have been taken and she has a waitlist of 65 people.

“People of color are disproportionately represented. There’s 8% population of people of color in Gloucester; that is a good thing because I know most of them. So when they all [non-minority residents] are getting calls, everyone else is getting calls to go to the doctor’s office and get vaccinated, [but] not the people of color. So they’re just started getting a few calls. So, hats off to Riverside I thank you so much. But why did it take so long? Why did it take so long to represent people of color?” said Dixon.

Initially set for Saturday morning at Riverside Walter Reed, the NAACP clinic has been rescheduled for Feb. 20 from 1-5 p.m., because of possible wintry weather. Dixon asks that those who need to reschedule, call her at this number: 804-693-2414.

Empty vials of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine are seen at a vaccination center at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas in Las Vegas. Makers of COVID-19 vaccines need everything to go right as they scale up from early-stage production to hundreds of millions of doses – and any little hiccup could cause a delay. (AP Photo/John Locher)