Immunitarianism: defence and sacrifice in the politics of Covid-19

Abstract

As witnessed over the last year, immunity emerged as one of most highly debated topics in the current Covid-19 pandemic. Countries around the globe have been debating whether herd immunity or lockdown is the best response, as the race continues for the development and rollout of effective vaccines against coronavirus and as the economic costs of implementing strict containment measures are weighed against public health costs. What became evident all the more is that immunity is precisely what bridges between biological life and political life in the current climate, be it in terms of the contentious notion of herd immunity, the geopolitical struggle for vaccines, or the possible emergence of “Covid-elite”, i.e. holders of so-called “immunity passports”. Immunity, as such, is certainly not only a matter of science and biology alone, but is inherently political in the way that pandemics themselves are often highly politicised. Drawing on the work of Roberto Esposito and other literature from the field of biopolitics and immunology, this paper provides a critical examination of the concept of immunity in light of the recent events, highlighting the intersections between the politics of defence and the politics of sacrifice which animate governments’ immunitary responses to the Covid-19 pandemic. The paper ends with a discussion on the forms of solidarity and local initiatives that have been mobilised during the current pandemic and their potential for an affirmative form of biopolitics. Overall, the main aim of this paper is to provide a critical cultural and philosophical analysis of Covid-19 debates and responses and a nuanced account on the biopolitical effects of the current pandemic, highlighting the paradoxical nature of immunity which straddles at once negative practices of defence and sacrifice as well as affirmative forms of community and solidarity beyond state apparatuses.

Perceptions and attitudes towards Covid-19 vaccines: narratives from members of the UK public

“…Besides the motivation to get vaccinated in order to protect others, intergenerational solidarity has manifested in various other forms following the outbreak of coronavirus. As Kaye (in Coffey 2020 ) points out, ‘[e]ver since the pandemic started, we’ve seen mutual aid groups springing out of the soil overnight’ where the young and able-bodied are providing assistance to their infirm and elderly neighbours, be it in terms of picking up and delivering food shopping and emergency parcels, providing medical supplies and arranging foodbank referrals, offering some digitally mediated company to those feeling lonely while in self-isolation, or simply maintaining corporeal distance to show respect towards the vulnerable (see also Ajana 2021 ; Stjernswärd and Glasdam 2021 ). At the same time, there is also a sense in which the pandemic has put to test intergeneration solidarity, as young generations are believed to have borne the brunt of the situation more than older generations.…”

A Crisis to Think with: Mining the Biopolitics of COVID-19 in American Public Discourse

“…And after countries reopened, having gone through a series of lockdowns, the new normal turned out to look very much like the old normal. War metaphors that positioned doctors as heroes on a battlefield tipped the biopolitical scale in favour of the biological and created a brief impression that social disparities revealed by the pandemic might be accidental (Ajana 2021;Benzi & Novarese 2022;Chapman & Miller 2021;Leonilli 2021). Guided by Foucault, this essay demonstrates that "differential vulnerabilities" should be read as a patent product of the existing social and political arrangements through which power expresses itself rather than the fallout of the pandemic.…”

Tropicality and the Choc en Retour of Covid-19 and Climate Change

“…These soundbites create an allusion of 'being in this together' when 'we' really are not, and of nudging us to "get behind our 'fearless' leaders (male) who hold power and not to seek answers to our questions [about their decisions and incompetence] until we have 'beaten' this enemy." Btihaj Ajana (2021) adds that "immunity is precisely what bridges…biological life and political life in the current climate, be it in terms of the contentious notion of herd immunity, the geopolitical struggle for vaccines, or the possible emergence of a 'Covid-elite', i.e. holders of so-called 'immunity passports'."…”