What could be better than the reassurance of knowing you’ve been vaccinated? Well, according to ACT UP, protection from deadly disease and being high. That’s why the LGBTQ+ activist group has started throwing “Joints 4 Jabs” popups around New York City. If you’re over 21 and can provide proof that you’ve been vaccinated, ACT UP wants to give you a free joint. And soon, they’d like to offer easy vaccinations to everyone who hasn’t received one yet.
ACT UP first tested out the initiative at a 4/20 event last month, and staged their most recent popup last weekend at New York’s annual Cannabis Parade. After marching alongside other local cannabis enthusiasts, the activist group set up a booth at Manhattan’s Union Square, where volunteers proceeded to give away “around 300 joints” throughout the day to anyone over 21 who had been vaccinated. According to a recent post on ACT UP’s Facebook account, their Cannabis Parade popup was considered a “huge success.”
“Joints For Jabs 1 was so successful that we want to continue the program through the summer to encourage vaccination among medicinal and recreational marijuana users and young people,” Brandon Cuicchi, an event organizer for ACT UP, said in a statement, expressing his excitement about the group’s initiative to raise awareness about vaccination. “Now that vaccine demand is slowing, it’s clear that vaccines will need to go where people already congregate such as parks and public spaces in order to reach them.”
“We know that young people are hesitant to get the COVID vaccine, especially if their families are,” Kellen Gold, another ACT UP member, recently told Gay City News. “So rather than relying on the fear of getting COVID, we want to encourage them to get vaccinated in a positive way.”
Based on the success of its first two popups, ACT UP is gearing up to continue its Joints 4 Jabs campaign. With the summer right around the corner, the group is already planning a third installment for this year’s Queer Liberation March — and members are hoping to make that one an even bigger affair. Currently, the activist group is working with the New York City Health Department to have on-site DOH representatives available to offer on-demand, walk-up vaccinations.
“A big part of Joints 4 Jabs’ effort is to help connect people to vaccinations,” Cuicchi exclusively told them. about J4J’s hopes to expand and include on-site vaccinations. “Until now, most vaccinations have been happening at megasites and pharmacies, where you have to go online and make an appointment days in advance.” Instead, per the ACT UP ethos, Cuicchi believes that COVID-19 vaccinations should be treated much in the same way global HIV testing has been treated in recent years. “We believe vaccinations should be taken directly to the people and we want them to reach the most marginalized people — those people who hang out in the Village, on the piers, and in other public places.”
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