Harris Speaks at Union Vaccination Site, Does Not Take Questions

CHICAGO, IL— Vice President Kamala Harris spoke at a vaccination site run by the Chicago Federation of Labor on Tuesday during her first visit to Chicago since she took office. The vice president was joined by top Democrats Mayor Lori Lightfoot, Sen. Dick Durbin, Governor J.B. Pritzker and Sen. Tammy Duckworth.

Harris spoke about the White House's efforts to expand vaccination sites in vulnerable communities and stressed the importance of equity as areas most impacted by the pandemic often have some of the lowest rates of vaccination.

The push for vaccine equity comes as Chicago recently saw news of misallocation of vaccines from Loretto Hospital on Chicago's West Side unfolds.

“We see light at the end of the tunnel because we’ve gone through so much as a nation,” Harris said to union workers at the vaccination site in Chinatown.

Other mass vaccination sites have recently opened at Chicago State University and Wrigley Field on the North Side.

At a press conference after Harris's tour, Durbin, Duckworth and Congressman Danny Davis spoke to a crowd outside of Ping Tom Park. Pritzker and Lightfoot did not make an appearance at the site, though they were scheduled to speak. A small group of protestors chanting anti-police slogans disrupted the event.

Lightfoot addressed the press later Tuesday afternoon and said she did not appear at the earlier press conference because she was speaking to the vice president. She reassured citizens that her absence does not indicate a poor working relationship with Pritzker.