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2020-04-20
Stacking Refrigerators: A Pandemic Work Story
This image is of me working at a refrigerator plant during the Spring of 2021. Before I started working at my law firm, I bounced around and did odd jobs to make ends meet. I came across this plant job in my hometown because the plant was suffering from severe labor shortages due to COVID-19. The plant was offering higher pay due to labor shortages and was offering to hire in employees faster because of it. We were required to wear mask inside the plant at all times regardless of it being extremely hot and were expected to do overtime and come in on weekends if needed. I did not only want to highlight the work conditions of this job but illuminate businesses began to operate due to the dire conditions of the pandemic. I also wanted to highlight how some people had to continue to work during the pandemic despite setbacks with workers, production numbers, and work conditions. It is important to illuminate stories like these because many essential workers stories are not heard and recognized. Despite unemployment numbers being at all-time high nationally, people are still working. Therefore, it is important to recognize the sacrifices and contributions workers like I had to make in order to continue to support ourselves and our loved ones. -
2020-03-21
Bakery queue March 2020 HIST30060
In March 2020 during the first covid-19 lockdown, we heard a lot about toilet paper shortages, queues and fights for it at supermarkets. What surprised me to see on a walk around Brunswick was a substantial queue at a local bakery. It was also one of the first social distanced queues I had seen and certainly the first I had taken a photo of. It summed up the new state of affairs to me, while reminding me of the importance that bread holds in our diets. In some ways I was relieved to see a queue for it rather than something more trivial such as toilet paper. The fact it was a local bakery highlighted to me the importance that people in Brunswick place on locally made produce. This also reminded me of the historical importance of bread, for instance the riots that occurred when bread and flour prices increased in France in the late 1780s or Lenin's promise to the Russian people of 'Peace, Bread, Land' in 1917. To me this photo captured how despite circumstances changing immensely, the importance of accessing staple foods remains more or less constant. -
2020-06-02
Farmers Market returns to Stevensville
This article offers an insight into a small Ontario town and how their farmers market dealt with the COVID-19 restrictions. -
2020-09-27
How Canadian Food Buying and Cooking Habits Have Changed Due to Covid-19
This article provides additional context to the Canadian baking experience during COVID-19 by examining food buying habits of families and how they shopped prior to the outbreak. -
2020-12-04
Retailers/Businesses Profit off COVID-19
This object represents all businesses that use the words “quarantine”, “social distance”, or any COVID-19 related word to make a catchy phrase to make a “meme” or merchandise”. I worked in retail when COVID-19 was in its earlier stages of spreading. Our shipment included countless “fashionable” face masks, tee shirts, mugs, posters, etc that were related to the pandemic. This represents our generation, as everyone is very quick and witty to make a profit or a joke off of anything going around. In earlier times, you wouldn’t find tee shirts that say “Keep Calm and Sanitize On” or “Social Distancing club” in retailers. With the technology and resources, we have now it is very easy to make these sorts of items. The idea is exploiting COVID-19 and maybe even seen as bringing light to the situation, which this generation is very well known for. This baby tee is just one example of the many witty merchandising being sold almost everywhere.