Main entry:

Burtch, Andrew Paul, 1978-

Title & Author:

Give me shelter : the failure of Canada's Cold War civil defence / Andrew Burtch.

Publication:

Vancouver : UBC Press, ©2012.

Description:

xiii, 277 pages : illustrations, portraits ; 24 cm.

Series:

Studies in Canadian military history, 1499-6251

Notes:
Includes bibliographical references (pages 263-271) and index.
From World War to Cold War, 1945-50 -- The Korean War and the trouble with civil defence, 1950-53 -- Publicizing Armageddon : responsible citizenship and civil defence, 1948-54 -- Evacuation and celebration, 1954-56 -- Emergency measures, 1957-59 -- The survival army, 1959-62 -- The path to a shelter program, 1949-59 -- Irresponsible citizens, 1959-62 -- Cuba, confusion, and retreat, 1962-68.
Issued also in electronic formats.

Summary:

What do you do when a nuclear weapon detonates nearby? During the early Cold War years of 1945-63, Civil Defence Canada and the Emergency Measures Organization planned for just such a disaster and encouraged citizens to prepare their families and their cities for nuclear war. By the time of the Cuban Missile Crisis, the civil defence program was widely mocked, and the public was vastly unprepared for nuclear war. Canada's civil defence program was born in the early Cold War, when fears of conflict between the superpowers ran high. Give Me Shelter features previously unreleased documents detailing Canada's nuclear survival plans. Andrew Burtch reveals how the organization publicly appealed to citizens to prepare for disaster themselves -- from volunteering as air-raid wardens to building fallout shelters. This tactic ultimately failed, however, due to a skeptical populace, chronic underfunding, and repeated bureaucratic fumbling. Give Me Shelter exposes the challenges of educating the public in the face of the looming threat of nuclear annihilation. Give Me Shelter explains how governments and the public prepared for the unexpected. It is essential reading for historians, policymakers, and anybody interested in Canada's Cold War home front. Published in association with the Canadian War Museum. Andrew Burtch is the historian for the post-1945 period at the Canadian War Museum. Publisher's note.

ISBN:

9780774822404 (bound)
0774822406
9780774822411 (pbk.)
0774822414 (pbk.)

Subject:

Canada. Civil Defence.
Canada. Défense civile.
Civil defense Canada Planning History 20th century.
Cold War.
Nuclear warfare.
Nuclear Warfare
Protection civile Canada Planification Histoire 20e siècle.
Guerre froide.
Guerre nucléaire.
nuclear wars.
Civil defense Planning.
Military policy.
Canada Military policy.
Canada Politique militaire Histoire 20e siècle.
Canada.
Canada Military policy History 20th century.

Form/genre:

History.

Added entries:

Studies in Canadian military history.

Holdings:

Location: Library main canada 277493
Call No.: UA929.C2 B8 2012
Status: Available