As coronavirus wraps around the globe, causing school and business closures, erratic economic swings and a critical toilet paper shortage, some have compared the ongoing struggle to contain the virus to a warlike effort. Like in the great wars of history, governments and private entities are dedicating mammoth amounts of resources and manpower to eradicate the illness.
For Americans, the last time this nation undertook such a monumental fear was during World War II, when practically every facet of American society was retooled to participate in the war effort. General Motors and Ford plants were transformed so that they could produce tanks, planes, guns, engines and other machines necessary to wage war. The North Carolina Shipbuilding Company in Wilmington went from producing cargo ships to cranking out “Liberty ships” — large, quickly built vessels that helped transport goods and men across the Atlantic.
Amid the current epidemic, facilities have been similarly retrofitted to help take down the coronavirus. The Brooks Brothers factory in Garland, N.C. is being converted into a mask production facility, and a Durham distillery has gone from making spirits to making sanitizer. Home-stuck North Carolinians have turned to making homemade masks, much like how women and children collected and sent in metal, cloth or any other type of scrap to be used for war production.
Over the past several weeks, grocery store shelves have been completely cleared of toilet paper, paper towels, hand sanitizer, meats and non-perishable goods, creating an atmosphere of scarcity. Similarly, during World War II, North Carolinian families faced scarcity due to wartime rationing. Due to the military’s need for things like oil, aluminum, rubber and nylon, civilian usage of these items became heavily restricted.
“Meat, coffee, sugar, butter, and shoes were rationed to meet military needs,” wrote Julian M. Pleasants in his book “Home Front: North Carolina during World War II.” “These restrictions were especially galling to many Americans because they involved some of the basics of the good life — meat, sugar and coffee.”
UNC also played a role in responding to these crises. During World War II, a United States Navy Pre-Flight School was stationed here, and more than 25,000 servicemen and women came through the University to study everything from foreign languages to meteorology. Though the school’s doors have been closed due to the coronavirus, UNC Hospitals continue to wage war against the virus, with hospital beds, dedicated staff and the development of new testing kits helping stave off the virus as it spreads throughout North Carolina.
Though German bombardment was not as big a concern to Americans as it was to Britons, city lights silhouetted cargo ships along the Eastern seaboards, making them perfect targets for German U-boats. As such, many coastal North Carolinian cities performed blackouts in an attempt to save the ships at sea. Though the coronavirus (thankfully) does not possess the U-boats or long-range bombers necessary to justify blackouts, I imagine the quiet streets of sheltered-in-place North Carolina are eerily similar to those of Wilmington amid a blackout.
Overcoming this virus will continue to be a massive, warlike undertaking, complete with the unfortunate deaths of its warriors and the “civilians” who were simply in the wrong place at the wrong time and contracted the virus. Just like after a war, the nation will need time to heal her wounds and rebuild.
Let’s take a lesson from North Carolinians during World War II and come together (metaphorically, of course). Let’s not stab each other over rolls of toilet paper or other supplies, and please — PLEASE — do your part and stay home if you can.
