Resistance, Activism, and Health

Resistance, activism, and social movements related to health have been commonplace throughout history. Yet it is easy to overlook the impact that agitation, opposition, and subversion have had on health and wellbeing. Contrary to popular belief, many breakthroughs in health and healthcare--from improvements in sanitation and access to birth control, to the ways in which research is conducted--have been the result of grassroots organizing, direct action, and community-led efforts that exerted pressure on those who wield power and control. This volume offers a global exploration of resistance, activism, and social movements related to health, offering a critical perspective on efforts to pursue and realize health justice. Bringing together an interdisciplinary cast of contributors, the volume illustrates the many ways in which acts of resistance interact with, undermine, promote, and sustain health, and the ways in which health can also be mobilized as a form of resistance. From distinct geographical locations emerge rich, and often personal, experiences that cover several pressing health issues, including Indigenous resistance, reproductive justice, disability, migrant rights, climate activism, the impacts of capitalism and intellectual property, access to healthcare, and medical resistance to institutional and state violence.Resistance, Activism, and Health is a guide for those seeking to better understand the role of resistance and activism as practices and commitments to protect and promote health; to identify, disrupt, and dismantle health-harming systems; and to imagine and enact new communities of care, all while amplifying the voices of people fighting for the realization of health justice worldwide. Together, the contributions to this volume demonstrate that a healthier, collective future is possible, and is being built with each passing day, by those who have dared to imagine it.