The present crisis often is described as and feels unprecedented. What can historical thinking, with its focus on precedents, contribute to our coming to terms with the COVID-19 pandemic? Jacqueline Antonovich and Powel Kazanjian will explore this and other questions about the place of history in the present moment in a one hour conversation, moderated by Helmut Puff. This remote event is presented in webinar format via Zoom and will be recorded for internal purpose only.

Jacqueline Antonovich is a historian of US health and medicine at Muhlenberg College. She also is the co-founder and executive editor of Nursing Clio, a peer-reviewed blog project that ties historical scholarship to present-day issues related to gender, health, and medicine.

Powel Kazanjian is the director of the AIDS Program and a member of the History faculty at the University of Michigan. As a historian, he is interested in and has published on the history of bacteriology, epidemics, and sexually transmitted diseases.

Helmut Puff is a historian of early modern Europe and the director of the Eisenberg Institute for Historical Studies.