‘It’s not the science we distrust; it’s the scientists’: Reframing the anti-vaccination movement within Black communities

Abstract

The anti-vaxx movement is often associated with conspiracy theories and dismissed as being ‘anti-science’. However, scepticism from Black communities must not be read as being ‘anti-science’, but rather ‘anti-scientist’ due to endemic racism in medical communities and structural inequalities in healthcare. Since slavery and its aftermath–such as through the case of Henrietta Lacks, and now through the Covid-19 pandemic–the devaluation of Black life has been highlighted through the failure to acknowledge and address health disparities amongst racialised and Black peoples [primarily in the United States]. Although the development of a vaccine is an important step in fighting Covid-19, its development and distribution need to be done so safely and in conjunction with addressing the needs and concerns of Black communities, who have been disproportionately affected by the pandemic.