Common Enemies

In this meticulously researched and authoritative book, Rachel Kahn Best provides both a bird's eye view and an on-the-ground look at the politics and culture of disease advocacy in the United States. Common Enemies illuminates the historical roots of campaigns against disease, the remarkable persistence of this form of social movement, and its contemporary paradoxes. This book is 'must read' sociology. -Elizabeth Mitchell Armstrong, Associate Professor of Sociology and Public Affairs, Princeton University In the first truly comprehensive study of disease campaigns, Rachel Kahn Best explodes the idea that there's anything obvious about the form of health politics that seems to define the United States. Clear, cogent, thoroughly researched, and hugely informative, Common Enemies takes a big-picture approach that resists simple answers. -Steven Epstein, author of Impure Science: AIDS, Activism, and the Politics of Knowledge and Inclusion: The Politics of Difference in Medical Research Disease campaigns are so prevalent that, perhaps surprisingly, we often forget what an incredibly powerful force they can be in American society and politics. Offering a compelling perspective on how advocacy politics are rarely simple zero-sum games, Common Enemies represents a landmark contribution, rich with groundbreaking insights about social movements, organizations, medical research, and health politics and policy. -Edward Walker, University of California, Los Angeles