Duck And Cover: Vintage Film Looks Back At Trucker's Role In Civil Defense

At the height of the Cold War, the American trucking industry was, and still is, a vital part of the country's survival plans in case of nuclear attack.

In the years directly following World War 2, the U.S. and Russia had quickly turned from necessary allies to bitter enemies, escalated by Russia achieving nuclear capabilities in 1949, and being able to deliver bombs to the U.S. in a particularly rude manner.

A growing movement concerned with "civil defense" appeared in the U.S., concerned with how the general population would survive when, not if, the Russians attacked. Some of you who were in grammar school between the early 50's and late 70's will remember the "duck and cover" method of surviving a nuclear blast. It almost seems silly and futile, in 2017, but in the furor of the Cold War, civil defense had become a regular part of mainstream education and culture.

The movement first appeared after WWI, which was really the first war in which the general populace was exposed to images and film of the atrocities of war, and spurred them as a whole to practice engagement and vigilance. There seemed, for a time, an attitude that we were all in this together, and we all had a part to play.

Enter the truck drivers, who to this day are still heavily involved in disaster relief and emergency roles, but in the 50's would have been an even more vital lifeline to the pre-suburban sprawl society we lived in. While there are no historical records for percentage of freight and goods carried by truck going that far back, you can be sure that while roads and highways were rapidly being improved, the Interstate Highway System did not yet exist, and more goods, as a percentage, were being carried by water, air, and rail than they are today.

Then, as now, it was the truckers who would save the day, and would be there to make sure that the supplies kept running, the people could go on living, and the world would keep turning. According to the film, most of the industry had been organized into their various roles, depending on location, equipment, and job duties.

The popularity of the civil defense movement faded away over time, along with the irrational paranoia of the now-more-informed masses, and general skepticism that the Russians actually wanted to use nukes. The doctrine of "Mutually Assured Destruction" or MAD, perhaps also made the idea of ducking and covering, or backyard bunkers, seem futile and too little, too late. However, there is no debate about how critical a role the industry and its drivers play in the safety and security of the U.S. citizenry.

Civil Defense: More than Duck and Cover

Civil defense

I really enjoy some of these old films you are digging up from the archives. Thanks for the effort you are putting into this!