Anti-vaxxers

From science advocate and March on Science National Co-Chair Jonathan M. Berman, Anti-Vaxxers is an essential takedown of the anti-vaccination movement. It traces the origins from its nineteenth-century antecedents to today's Facebook activists, offering strategies for refuting false claims made by friends and family.

Described as a "clear and insightful" critique by the Financial Times, Anti-Vaxxers delves into the troubling persistence of anti-vaccination beliefs. Despite the undeniable success of vaccines as one of the most effective public health interventions in history, a vocal anti-vaccination movement persists. This movement includes celebrity activists like Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Jenny McCarthy and spreads its message through books, documentaries, and social media.

In Anti-Vaxxers, Jonathan Berman examines this phenomenon comprehensively, recounting its history and scrutinising its claims. He suggests a strategy for countering these misguided beliefs by first explaining how vaccines function and then exploring the resistance to Britain's Vaccination Act of 1853. Berman demonstrates how past arguments mirror those made by today's anti-vaxxers.

The book also addresses the development of new vaccines in the twentieth century, such as those against polio and MMR (measles, mumps, rubella), and the infamous debunked paper that erroneously linked the MMR vaccine to autism. It touches upon the CDC conspiracy theory from the documentary Vaxxed, the debate over alternative vaccination schedules, Kennedy's misled campaign against thimerosal, and the exploited religious exemptions to vaccination.

Berman argues that changing the minds of anti-vaxxers requires more than presenting them with a list of facts; instead, it's about addressing the cultural aspects tied to how individuals perceive themselves as parents and community members. Effective pro-vaccination efforts should highlight these cultural aspects rather than merely countering social media posts.