Beyonce’s BEYGOOD Foundation To Offer COVID-19 Testing

Amid nationwide shortages in coronavirus testing, Beyoncé is stepping in to help people in her hometown get properly screened for COVID-19.

In a press release posted to her website, the superstar and her mother Tina Knowles Lawson reveal that they have created an initiative called #IDIDMYPART to encourage Houston residents to get tested in wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has disproportionately affected the African American community.

“The virus is wreaking havoc on the Black community so we need a movement to prioritize our health,” Knowles Lawson says, citing a recent report from the CDC that as of April 23, 33.7% of COVID patients were African American, even though African Americans comprise 13% of US population. And as per the CDC, as of mid-April, roughly 33% of all fatalities are African American,” Knowles Lawson said in the statement.

“We are all in this together. But we have to look at what is happening in our Black and Brown communities and how they are being decimated by COVID-19,” She continues. “It is critical that we stay vigilant with social distancing, wearing a mask, and most of all getting tested. If you don’t get tested then you don’t know if you are a carrier of the virus. Being asymptomatic is how you infect your entire household and those around you, the very people you love. We have got to go to these free testing facilities and find out our status.”

Knowles Lawson is teaming up with Matthew 25: Ministries, an organization that has been providing Houston with supplies distributed by St. John’s Methodist Church in Downtown, Houston, for two full years post Hurricane Harvey. They are also challenging other celebrities to help out in their respective native cities.

Tyler Perry has reportedly accepted the challenge already and held his own #IDIDMYPART campaign in Atlanta, Georgia. He also challenged other celebrities to continue the movement.

On Friday, May 8, United Memorial Medical Center (UMMC) Healthcare staff will administer 500 COVID-19 tests in Houston’s 3rd Ward at Cullen Middle School, located at 6900 Scott Street, Houston, Texas 77021. Testing will take place from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm.

On Saturday, May 9, an additional 500 tests will be administered again by UMMC, this time in North Houston at Forest Brook Middle School, 7525 Tidwell, Houston, Texas 77016. Testing will also take place from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm.