Sonya deLaat, PhD
Academic Advisor, Global Health Program
McMaster University

History is fragmented. Reconstructing the lived realities of those who came before requires us to examine historical artifacts, from documents to photographs. The introduction of the camera in the 19th century shed light on unseen corners of the world and, in the context of pandemics, was a critical tool in the development of modern medicine – with photography practiced both as science and art.

Sonya de Laat explores cultural histories of public reaction to disease outbreaks in the context of COVID-19. Combining archival photographs with interview quotes and popular culture produced during different pandemic and global disease outbreaks, de Laat delves into visual histories and their significance with respect to pandemics past and current. de Laat traces threads between recent anti-lockdown protests taking place in the United States to anti-quarantine attacks over 150 years ago.

Reactions to past and present outbreaks of disease reveal recurrence of similar responses, ranging from fear to frustration to resilience, she says. However, as de Laat explains, “these shouldn’t be seen as a failure to progress, but rather information to help us prepare for and innovate our way of out this and future pandemics.”

With an academic background is in anthropology and media studies, de Laat’s research interests span visual histories of humanitarian action, humanitarian health ethics, and visual research methods. She is an active member of the Canadian Network on Humanitarian Histories and Humanitarian Health Ethics (HHE) Network.

Expert Perspectives on Pandemics: Global Health Webinar Series 2020
This free webinar series explores transdisciplinary perspectives on pandemics in the context of COVID-19. View the series here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL4mpz0PbgCdl1JECVD8FVhxtcHhu9gODg
or through our WebEx Platform https://globalhealth.mcmaster.ca/2020-webinar-series%20

The COVID-19 emergency presents a global challenge to our health care systems, our economy and our ways of living. In the face of this unprecedented global health crisis, McMaster is dedicated to innovation and collaboration in the discovery of solutions to help combat COVID-19.

Take part in these webinars as experts delve into topics including flattening the curve, forecasting the new Coronavirus, cultural histories and reactions to past pandemics, and the search for a magic bullet. The series is part of the Master of Science in Global Health program's global health symposium, the program's capstone project.

DISCLAIMER: The views and opinions expressed by attendees, participants, and speakers as part of this webinar series are those of the individuals stating them and are not representative of an ideological stance or public policy position by McMaster University or the Global Health Office.