Vaccination and the enforcement of stipulations of personal
hygiene can be viewed as different mechanisms of colonial government.
Immunization campaigns reach and register populations, but they may also
appear to obviate the need for behavioral reform. Hygiene education implies
the development of a disciplined, self-governing citizenry, although in the
colonial setting validation of such attainment is usually deferred. This article
explores the tension between mechanisms of security (immunization) and
drill (hygiene) in the Philippines, under the United States’ colonial regime, in
the early twentieth century. KEYWORDS: Immunization, vaccination, public
health, state medicine, colonial, race, United States, Philippines

in: Journal of the History of Medicine, 2007 vol. 62 (1) pages 1-20