Vaccine-hunting volunteers help Americans score COVID jabs

Armies of online volunteers have taken it upon themselves to help total strangers navigate myriad COVID-19 vaccine scheduling systems in the United States. It’s admirable, vital work — as well as a symbol of the country’s sometimes chaotic vaccination campaign.

Rebecca Burke’s finger hovered over the “post” button on a COVID-19 vaccination thread. Was she really going to ask a total stranger on Facebook to help her get her first dose? With two young children at home and a May return-to-work date from her New York City employer hovering over her, the education administrator said she decided to “put some faith in humanity and move forward”. “A volunteer sent me a message the minute I posted,” Burke, 33, told Al Jazeera. “She said she was happy to support an educator and that I would be the 201st person she’s helped. In the wee hours of that night, she sent me booking information. It was the deepest internet connection I’ve felt in a long time. I’m on the internet a lot right now, but I felt extreme gratitude for this act of online kindness from a stranger.”