Duck and Cover

At the height of the Cold War in the 1950s, the U.S. created training materials for school children to protect themselves in case of a nuclear explosion. Many older adults recall crouching under their desks, or in interior corridors, and tucking their heads under their arms for practice.

My school didn’t hold “duck and cover” drills. What enemy would waste nuclear weapons on Morgantown, West Virginia? However, I remember lining up in the playground for military-style metal “dog tags” embossed with name, religion, and probably more. We were to wear them on a chain around the neck, so our bombed bodies could be identified and given an appropriate burial.

The Soviet bomb didn’t fall, the Cold War ended, and today school children learn self-protection through active shooter drills instead. Déjà vu all over again? Two differences stand out. First, school shootings aren’t merely possible but occur at an alarming rate. An individual child’s risk is low, but one dead child is one too many. Second, the source of potential danger is no longer overseas but in our home neighborhoods. In the words of Walt Kelly’s cartoon possum Pogo, “We have met the enemy and he is us.”

Active shooter drills are controversial. Some children say preparation boosts their confidence. Others experience anxiety to the point of PTSD, especially if a drill comes unannounced and mimics a real shooting. Best would be to end school shootings in the first place. Common-sense laws to bar access to firearms except for recreation, hunting, or self-defense? Stronger mental health systems for youth? Ample funding for nonpartisan scientific research into gun violence and the effectiveness of current state-level preventive strategies would be a good place to start.

Image: The U.S. produced the pamphlet Duck and Cover in 1951. A film version followed the next year.