Humans are prone to blame others for a tragedy like a pandemic. In addition to foreigners, people within our community who are considered “other” are targeted. Among religious fanatics, those believed to be “sinners” are stigmatized and often brutalized. However, during the cholera epidemics of the 19th century, Eastern European Jews developed a communal ritual of protection: the “cholera wedding” or “black wedding” in which two of the town’s marginal residents (orphans, beggars, the handicapped) were forcibly married, usually in the cemetery. Some interpreted this as a mitzvah or charitable act; others emphasized its magical aspects as a sacrifice in exchange for divine protection. During the Spanish flu pandemic in 1918, cholera weddings made a comeback among New York City’s Jewish population. Read more about the deadly Spanish flu pandemic a century ago in On the Shore (1917-1925), a tale of conflict between generations in a Lower East Side immigrant family (see NOVELS).
