Do the rich and well-connected in our society sometimes get unfair advantages over the rest of us? Of course not. They get unfair advantages pretty much ALL the time. The most recent example comes from Los Angeles, where authorities noticed that residents of affluent areas were being inoculated at much higher rates than LA’s poorer communities, especially communities where black and Latino people live. So a program was established to issue special codes to community groups in these areas to distribute to those eligible for the vaccine—health care workers, senior citizens, etc. But lo and behold, it turns out that group texts and messages began flying around the LA basin and wealthier residents began getting a hold of these same codes to get themselves vaccinated. Shocking, no?

In this clip from The Damage Report, Aida and John discuss this latest example of inequality and corruption rearing its head, victimizing the poor and marginalized at the expense of the wealthy. “America is going to America,” Aida says, so we shouldn’t be surprised, but there’s the added kicker that it’s been predominantly working class people and people of color who have been showing up and taking care of everyone else during this pandemic, and damn if they still can’t catch a break.

As to the actual individuals unfairly accessing these codes, Aida suspects many may be among the “woke” crowd who say the right thing, post their “Black Lives Matters” signs and claim “allyship,” but who, when push comes to shove, will use their wealth and privilege to take advantage and jump to the front of the line, leaving workers and BIPOC people to wait even longer for their due, and suffer the health consequences as a result.