Lessons from 1918 Flu Pandemic...
By the fall of 1918 the disease touched down in San Francisco for the first time.
By mid-October 1918, there had been more than
20,000 cases of influenza and 1,000 deaths in the city so far.
At first, there was mostly widespread compliance with mask-wearing orders when the first one was issued by the Board of Supervisors on October 25, 1918.
Businesses, restaurants, and theaters were also closed, and the city's Board of Health advised people to avoid large crowds and gatherings.
Surgical masks at the time were constructed from gauze, but the materials that many citizens used for masks were even more "porous and ineffective." And not everyone was devout in their adherence to the mask-wearing law.
On October 27, 110 people were arrested for flouting officials and either refusing to wear masks in public or wearing them improperly.
They were sent to jail for "disturbing the peace," and those who could afford it were released under a $10 bail.
Some served 30-day jail sentences, according to a report from the
San Francisco Chronicle. Many more were gradually imprisoned in the following weeks for the same reason — the Chronicle reported
175 arrests on November 2, 1918.
The jails became overcrowded, with officers working double-duty to process cases.
Some incidents were more violent than others.
A blacksmith named James Wiser refused to wear a mask in public and stood on a street corner attempting to convince others in a crowd to discharge their masks.
Photos show how San Francisco had to convince its 'mask slackers' to wear masks after many defied the law while the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic seized the city
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The bumpy ride of “The Mask Slackers” and the formation of the “Anti Mask Wearing League” of San Francisco in the 1918 Flu Pandemic.
Good outline and archival photos in this article.
Well, what a merry go round the mask thing was in certain places back in 1918. Same issues of civil liberties. And, no one likes wearing them.
At first SF imposed the ordinance and shut down the economy, then the flu declined, then it spiked, this time ordinance with certain businesses open, people got fed up... SF ended up having a terrible death toll.
Philadelphia topped the list of losses at 250k because they decided to throw a massive parade in the middle of the pandemic. Other cities barely touched.
So, here we are in 2020 going down that rabbit hole, again...
As was pointed out, with the 10th amendment, it’s not like federal government can just enact a mask law. They enacted guidance. It’s up to the states to mandate. And there’s plenty blowback at that level.
What struck me about 1918 which is what I think is part of what is missing now, is that initially when the people wore masks to protect our troops in WWI everybody was pretty much on board. As the pandemic wore on things devolved.
Now, we are struggling to find that balance again. Very hard to enact law or police something like masks or people’s tendency to an all or nothing mentality.
Leadership, facts, and messaging is what got us through in the northeast, for sure. Both NY and NJ are tightening some rules again as cases creep up. But both governors have also been very present, very informative, and both have held press conferences this week...
What’s very unfortunate is there’s not a unified feeling in this country like there was, say after September 11th. Agree or disagree politically, the messaging at the top was consistent, clear, and compassionate to all Americans. And we were all on board with it, too. Nobody was going to mess with us again.
Would it have been smarter to not completely shut down? Don’t know because almost the whole world shut down even it’s healthy people for the very first time in history.
We don’t even know why we are struggling so. We are like 50 countries under an umbrella. Failures and successes exist on all levels. It’s testing our humanity, faith, and the constitution.
Having seen these two very different times, one where America felt very unified in 2001, and now so divided in 2020, I can also see how powerful messaging at the top really is. Or isn’t.
Jmo
