Rep. Andre Carson's 5-second pause, when asked if he'll get vaccinated against COVID-19, underscores the hesitation most African-Americans have ... but he believes that can change.
We got the U.S. Congressman on Capitol Hill Thursday and he addressed the new study showing only 14% of African-Americans trust the vaccine will be safe -- in short, he's not surprised.
The congressman brought up America's ugly history when it comes to medical research on Black citizens -- most notably the Tuskegee experiments with syphilis on 600 Black men.
However, Andre also pointed to the work of Dr. Kizzmekia Corbett ... the African-American scientist who helped develop one of the COVID-19 vaccines.
He believes that will help start the "healing" process necessary for African-Americans to trust vaccines, but stressed ... it's just a start.
Rep. Carson shouted out the efforts of a few more people before telling us he's willing to step up to the plate ... whenever the vaccine becomes available to him. Interestingly, although he's a Congressman, he's not looking to cut the line.