We Should Learn From the 1918 Flu

A lesson from Pittsburgh

Pittsburgh’s experience during the 1918 flu offers a cautionary tale for the coronavirus pandemic. This is what Eric Jaffe, the editorial director of Sidewalk Talk, a publication about the future of cities, warns in a recent story:

Motivated largely by political factors and local business interests, Pittsburgh leaders pushed for an end to its gathering ban before the state health department believed it was safe to do so, according to multiple histories of that period. Following that move, Pittsburgh…