Kira Ganga Kieffer, "Unvaccinated Under God: Religion and Vaccine Hesitancy in Modern America" (Princeton UP, 2026)

Vaccine hesitancy in America isn't just about science or politics—it's deeply rooted in religion, identity, and moral conviction. In her groundbreaking book *Unvaccinated Under God*, Dr. Kira Kieffer reveals that vaccine skepticism has been a recurring feature of American life since the 18th century, long before the term 'anti-vaxxer' was coined. What’s revolutionary is her argument that vaccine refusal isn’t primarily about faith in traditional religions, but about a broader, often implicit religiosity—where decisions about health, purity, and bodily autonomy are framed in moral, spiritual, and existential terms. From early fears of 'satanic' inoculation to the 1982 DPT vaccine roulette documentary, the 1997 mercury scare, and the debunked MMR-autism link, Kieffer traces how fear, trauma, and distrust of institutions have been channeled through religious language. The real turning point came in the 2010s, when outbreaks in isolated communities like Orthodox Jewish enclaves and Amish settlements were mislabeled as 'religious' resistance—fueling a national backlash against religious exemptions. This sparked a surprising coalition: wellness-focused parents, conservative Christians fighting for religious freedom, and anti-establishment libertarians. By the time of the pandemic, vaccines became a political litmus test—Biden’s call to 'believe in science' was seen by many conservatives as a demand for surrender, not trust. Meanwhile, RFK Jr.