Vaccinologist Peter Hotez explains how the movement to oppose science and scientists has gained power
Peter Hotez is no stranger to scientific backlash. The esteemed pediatrician and vaccinologist has been working to develop vaccines for neglected tropical diseases for decades and has encountered fierce opposition to his work. But in recent years the backlash has gained momentum and spread beyond vaccines to science and scientists in general.
Your book discusses how the modern antiscience movement grew out of false claims in the late 1990s that vaccines cause autism, right? That was the response from the [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] back in 2017 when I wrote about how the anti-vaxxers are winning. We’re not supposed to talk about it, or we’ll give it oxygen. But it’s got all the oxygen it needs. You might say, “Well, why write it now?” For two reasons: one, it’s become a killer movement.
That’s an interesting analogy because the far right and the anti-vax movement have compared COVID vaccination efforts to the Nazis’ treatment of Jewish people during the Holocaust. In the book you also talk about how the U.S. is exporting anti-vax and antiscience sentiment around the world.
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