Fauci defends Jerome Adams's remarks on African American alcohol, tobacco usage amid pandemic

Anthony Fauci, a top infectious disease doctor and a key member of the White House coronavirus task force, pushed back when a PBS reporter asked Surgeon General Jerome Adams to comment on whether or not he thought he used "offensive language" when he urged African Americans to avoid using alcohol and tobacco.

"You said that African-Americans and Latinos should avoid alcohol, drugs and tobacco. You also said do it for Big Momma and Pop Pop," said PBS's Yamiche Alcindor to Adams during Friday's White House press briefing.

"I said granddaddy, too," Adams noted.

"There are some people online who are already offended by that language and the idea that behaviors may be leading to these high death rates. Could you, I guess, have a response to those who might be offended by the language you used?" Alcindor asked.

Adams responded, saying that he used vernacular that he uses with his own family members.

"I've been meeting with the NAACP, with the National Medical Association. I actually talked with Derek Johnson multiple times this week, the head of the NAACP, and we need targeted outreach to the African American community," Adams responded. "And I used the language that is used in my family. I have a Puerto Rican brother-in-law. I call my granddaddy, 'granddaddy.' I have relatives who call their grandparents, 'Big Mama.' So that was not meant to be offensive."

"That is the language we use, and that I use, and we need to continue to target our outreach to those communities. It is critically important that they understand it's not just about them. We need to do our part at the federal level, we need people to do their parts at the state level. And we need everyone, black, brown, white, whatever color you are, to follow the president's coronavirus guidelines," he said.

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