A 40-year history of civil defense

A New Direction Toward a More Secure America

“…The premature ending of the Kennedy administration took with it a President who advanced civil defense initiatives further than any previous administration and its legacy was placed in the hands of his successor President Johnson. 49 Wayne B. Blanchard, American Civil Defense 1945-1984 McNamara believed the administration had a responsibility to advance civil defense initiatives. In an address to Congress, he stated, "a well planned and executed nationwide civil defense program centered on fallout shelters could contribute much more than further increases in strategic offensive or defensive forces, to the saving of lives in the event of a nuclear attack."…”

Geographers and Nuclear War: Why We Lack Influence on Public Policy

“…Zeigler (1985) provides a good overview of civil defense and evacuation planning in the U.S. but offers little substantive geographical analysis. A more comprehensive view of the U.S. civil defense program is found in Winkler (1984).…”

Journalism and Activism: Dorothy Day's Response to the Cold War*

“…Because the cost of building shelters adequate against the destwctive capability of the hydrogen bomb seemed prohibitively high, evacuation if attacked emerged as the focus of civil defense policy. 52 Reflecting the new orientation towards evacuation, a three-day "Operation Alert" was scheduled for June 1955. It would test whether, in a nuclear emergency, officials could smoothly evacuate Washington and carry on their duties at relocation sites.…”