Omicron variant drives calls for vaccine equity, waiving of patents; The Matter of Black Lives, and what Black Lives Matter means today; and checking in on Abbotsford, B.C., as rain continues to force residents from their homes
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The emergence of the omicron coronavirus variant is sparking fresh calls for vaccine equity, including calls to temporarily waive patents around vaccine production. Pauline Worsfold, a registered nurse and a member of the Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions, explains why waiving the patent will help ramp up vaccine production. We also talk about the big picture with Dr. Githinji Gitahi, Global CEO of Amref Health Africa; and Dr. Wafaa El-Sadr, an epidemiologist and the director of ICAP, a global health centre at Columbia University.
Then, journalist, historian and New Yorker staff writer Jelani Cobb has co-edited a vast collection of writing from the magazine titled The Matter of Black Lives. He talks about James Baldwin’s writing, the killing of Ahmaud Arbery and what Black Lives Matter means today.
And the downpour continues in Abbotsford, B.C., with no end in sight. We speak to residents who are being told to evacuate their homes for the second time this month. We also talk to Abbotsford mayor Henry Braun about bracing for more rainfall; and migrant workers in the area, who are watching their livelihoods drown in the floodwaters.