Health Department Ignorance

Health Department Ignorance

Published in Harper's Weekly in 1865, this image depicts the laziness of the New York Health Department. There were many diseases prevalent in New York at the time devastating immigrants and native New Yorker's alike. As you can see, there were Irish immigrants going on strike and ongoing negotiations with street cleaners but the Department of Health doesn't seem too concerned about it. They look old, disinterested, and sleepy.

I could not find the original Harper's Weekly with this cartoon so I'll simply attribute the work to where I found it.

Harper's Weekly

McDonnelll, Tim. "5 New York Epidemics That Were Way Worse than Ebola Will Be." Mother Jones. N.p., 24 Oct. 2014. Web. 15 Dec. 2015. http://www.motherjones.com/wp-content/uploads/board-630.jpg

Mother Jones

1865

Nick D'Addario