The Moms Of These Celebrities Have An Important Message About COVID-19
The fight against COVID-19 misinformation continues apace, with worrying reports confirming the vast majority of Americans have been exposed to fake news about the pandemic and in particular vaccines, with no recourse for separating fact from fiction. As CNN reported in November 2021, according to recent data gathered by the Kaiser Family Foundation, almost 80% of Americans surveyed admitted to hearing at least one of the included falsehoods. Worryingly, they had no idea whether the information was accurate.
According to the report's authors, "Most commonly, six in 10 adults have heard that the government is exaggerating the number of COVID-19 deaths by counting deaths due to other factors as coronavirus deaths and either believe this to be true (38%) or aren't sure if it's true or false (22%)." Likewise, a third of those surveyed "believe or are unsure whether deaths due to the COVID-19 vaccine are being intentionally hidden by the government (35%)," while a whopping three in 10 people are concerned vaccines may cause infertility or, worse yet, that horse medicine Ivermectin could be a safer alternative treatment for the deadly virus.
Plenty of damaging falsehoods are being actively perpetuated about the vaccines, in particular, including that they might actually give you COVID-19, that they contain a microchip so the government can track and/or control you, or even that they could potentially alter your DNA somehow. In the wake of the scattered information, a group of Hollywood moms is banding together to fight back against this misinformation — and they're demanding our attention.
Michelle Obama is leading the charge for vaccines
As HuffPost reports, none other than the former first lady herself, Michelle Obama, is leading the charge to encourage those on the fence to get vaccinated ASAP. Obama joined forces with several fellow celebrity moms to spread the word about COVID-19 in a fun PSA created with the legendary Second City comedy troupe. Starring alongside Obama are Sharon Feldstein (mother of actors Jonah Hill and Beanie Feldstein), Terria Joseph and Patsy Noah (whose musical kids are singers Alicia Keys and Adam Levine respectively), NBA player Chris Paul's proud mama, Robin Paul, John David Washington's mom and Denzel Washington's wife, Pauletta Washington, and Claire Stoermer, whose talented kid is youngest Emmy winner in history, Zendaya.
Sharon gets the conversation going in the short clip, which is cheekily entitled, "Get Vaccinated' — Mom Said So," and is available to watch on YouTube, by asking the assembled group, "We all have to get vaccinated, right? I mean, what do you guys think?" to which Noah responds, "What she said." Seemingly anticipating a fight, the ladies later plot to use their "mom powers" — which include, but are not limited to, bribery, guilt-tripping, and texting repeatedly to the point of annoyance — before taking turns to directly encourage everybody watching to get the vaccine. Pauletta even admitted her own reluctance to get the jab, but acknowledged now she's done it, "I feel free."
Naturally, Obama gets the final word, emphatically stating, "You don't need to be a mom to be a superhero."