In 2008, Northern Nigeria had the greatest number of confirmed cases ofpolio in the world and was the source of outbreaks in several West Africancountries. Elisha P. Renne explores the politics and social dynamics of the NorthernNigerian response to the Global Polio Eradication Initiative, which has been metwith extreme skepticism, subversion, and the refusal of some parents to immunizetheir children. Renne explains this resistance by situating the eradication effortwithin the social, political, cultural, and historical context of the experience ofpolio in Northern Nigeria. Questions of vaccine safety, the ability of thegovernment to provide basic health care, and the role of the international communityare factored into this sensitive and complex treatment of the ethics of global polioeradication efforts.