By Connor Scott
CCC Journalism Program
BLACKWOOD – United States Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy and actor Daniel Ezra from the hit Netflix show “All American” visited the Camden County College Blackwood campus on Nov. 28 as part of Murthy’s national “We are made to connect” college tour.
Students were invited to participate in this discussion about mental health and loneliness in a post-pandemic society from 3 to 4 p.m. in Civic Hall. Camden County College was the only stop on the tour in New Jersey.
Students filled Civic Hall, drawn by having the United States surgeon general and a Netflix star together on campus.
“I watched All American and hearing that the lead actor was coming to talk about mental health sparked my curiosity and I also thought it would be neat to see him in person and not on a screen,” said Brayan Huerta Aucacama, a student at Camden County College.
Murthy and Ezra received an ovation upon arriving in Civic Hall. Camden County College President Lovell Pugh-Bassett accompanied and welcomed them. First Lady of New Jersey Tammy Murphy also attended, advocating for the “We are made to connect” tour.
In his presentation, Murthy said COVID19 has hindered the ability to speak in society. “The experience with COVID is one that made you reverse your ability to speak to people about your struggles or even develop relationships with other people in society,” he said. “Our social muscle is no different. It can be built, but if we don’t use it for a while, it can be weak.”
In a discussion between Murthy and Ezra, Ezra explained his decision to take the role of Spencer James in All American. “The role itself was such a challenge in learning a new accent, and I also saw a lot of people I know with mental health struggles that I wanted to help show they’re not alone and how real mental health can be,” he said.
Ezra’s character in All American struggles with loneliness, depression and responsibility and shows how hard it can be for a teenager to have all that weight on his shoulders.
“My character really expresses struggles with mental health, loneliness and separation from society, and I have even gotten some messages sent to me that say this episode or part of the episode sparked their courage to express their struggles to family and friends,” Ezra stated.
In connection with the “We are made to connect tour,” Murthy has a 5-for-5 connection challenge that allows students to connect and build relationships in five days with a different challenge every day. The goal is to allow students to get out of the post-pandemic shell they built during the pandemic.
Murthy closed the event by saying, “If you want to go fast, go alone, but if you want to go far, go together.”
For more details about Murthy’s 5-for-5 challenge, click here.
For more details about his tour, use the hashtag #MadeToConnect.