Items

• 
  12/03/2021

  Wendy Vorpahl Oral History, 2021/12/03

  Wendy Vorpahl is from Gillett, Wisconsin which is a small town near Green Bay. She has four boys: Matthew, Mark, Aaron, and Adam who all fall on the Autism Spectrum with Mark and Aaron having classic/severe Autism. In this interview, Wendy talks about the impact the pandemic had on her small business and the small business around her, her family’s experience with all getting Covid at the end of 2020, as well as her thoughts and feelings about the vaccine and the handling of the pandemic. Matthew and Aaron also come into the conversation at a few points as Matthew answers some questions and Aaron can be seen and heard in the background.
• 
  2020-03-13

  Bread?

  Before this was taken, I found out school would be online for the rest of the semester heading home for spring break plus two weeks. Boy if only I knew what I know now...
• 
  April 10, 2020

  2020 Grocery Store Fashion

  “This morning’s grocery store fashion,” I wrote on April 10, 2020 when I posted this photo to Instagram. I tagged #socialdistancing #maskedcrusader and #newyorktough. This was the first time I wore a mask when I left the house and it was one of only a few times I’d gone farther than my backyard or front stoop since lockdown began the month prior. I had been listening to public health officials who advised wearing “face coverings” to help “flatten the curve” (reduce the number of new infections to prevent overcrowding in hospitals). I also followed their advice to opt for cloth and save the real masks for health care workers on the “front lines” of the pandemic who were facing a shortage of “PPE - personal protective equipment.” So many new words and phrases had entered the lexicon and I was struggling to keep up. Masking felt like a way I could protect myself and family and contribute to the effort to squash Covid-19. I found a video tutorial for how to make a “no sew” mask using a bandana folded over hair ties for ear loops. I added a coffee filter in the middle of the folds for good measure. I used this type of mask into the summer of 2020 when I realized masks weren’t going away anytime soon and started wearing more fitted cloth versions. I remember masking felt strange and changed the way I interacted with people I passed who couldn’t see my customary polite smile of acknowledgment. I started nodding slightly and learned to squint my eyes to indicate a smile when I passed people to make up for this impediment. Masking made it difficult to be heard and understood especially through other precautionary barriers like plexiglass shields at checkout counters. These days when I encounter people I first met when masking was more widespread, I sometimes don’t recognize them because I’ve never seen the bottom half of their face. It’s a bizarre set of circumstances. Now I usually only mask if I have respiratory symptoms or if I am around someone particularly vulnerable to COVID-19. When I do mask, I choose an N-95 respirator which is readily available and more effective than my cloth mask and coffee filter creation of April 2020.
• 2020-03-20

  Life of a Retail Worker During COVID-19

  Throughout the entire pandemic, I worked in retail (specifically at the "Meijer" grocery store). As essential workers, it was frightening going to work and exposing myself to illness while many others stayed home in quarantine. I went to work and was met with frantic customers panic buying everything and anything they could find - the meat aisles were empty. The bread was gone. There wasn't a roll of toilet paper to be found. Although stock of popular items was low on a national level, we still received questions about when we would be getting more shipment in. It seemed as though people were gearing up for an apocalypse rather than a pandemic. We went around cleaning constantly, wiping and spraying down every surface we could find. Masks were mandated and giant plexi-glass shields were installed in the check-out lanes. It was incredibly difficult to work alongside others who were absolutely terrified - I was worried that I would do something wrong and set them off. Working throughout the pandemic completely wore me out and shed light on who people become when they're scared.
• 
  2022-09-11

  Covid-19 Reflection - Our Social Society

  My reflection on the initial shift in social norms in Tampa, Florids
• 
  2022-04-29

  An ~Interesting~ Time to Say the Least

  After living through it for the past two years, there is SO much to say about the COVID-19 pandemic, and I don’t even know where to begin. I guess the main takeaway is that it really forced everyone’s true colors to show. At the beginning in March of 2020, everyone was so uncertain of what was to come, and that alone made it so scary, that most people had no choice but to make light of the situation. I remember not only the grocery store shelves being empty because of everyone over-stocking their pantries and shortages in general, but also the hobby sections of Walmart and Target being empty, which was truly a really beautiful thing to witness. People were taking the time in quarantine to learn more about themselves whether that meant learning new skills or trying out new hobbies and spending time with their families doing puzzles and playing games as well. For me personally, I taught myself how to sew, which is depicted in the attached photo, as I needed to make face masks for my boyfriend and me (out of an old t-shirt) so we could safely go to the grocery store, before masks were widely available. I also learned how to bake really delicious treats, got back into reading, and even painted a few pictures here and there. Aside from these positives, it also brought out a lot of negatives as well including built up anxiety and anger that came out in the form of a new equal rights movement: Black Lives Matter after George Floyd's murder. It was scary at the time because protests and riots got very violent, but any movement for equal rights is a good movement, so it was a positive in the long run. I would say COVID-19 also played a role in the insurrection at the capitol on January 6th of 2021, and more division between political parties regarding vaccines and mandates. One could go on for hours listing all the positive and negative aspects that came about from the pandemic, but it's most important to recognize how resilient we as humans are. I'm proud of how far we've come.
• 
  2020-03-26

  ITALY Covid-19 Lockdown

  In the summer of 2019, I officially went to Italy to live with my significant other. The transition to a new country was difficult, but I eventually made it. Throughout my adventure, I've met some wonderful individuals and seen incredible sights that I never imagined I'd see. The year 2019 was full of happiness, adventures, and meeting the most incredible friends whom I will remember for the rest of my life. My best friends from the United States came to visit me at the beginning of 2020, and we had no idea that as soon as they left, the entire country would be put under lockdown. Everyone has been talking about the COVID-19 and how it is affecting Asia as the beginning of March 2020 approaches. There was a word going around that we had a couple of cases in town, and those cases grew and swelled. Individuals did not possess masks, so everyone used whatever they had to cover their mouth and nose. The government announced a lockdown out of nowhere, masks were required to be worn inside the building, and people did not own masks. The government then declared a total lockdown, with people only allowed to leave their houses for essentials like the hospital, grocery store, or job. Except for grocery stores, nothing was open; whenever we leave our homes, we must fill out a paper stating where we are going and why, as carabinieri (police) are stationed throughout the city to stop those who leave their homes. Being stranded at home has its ups and downs, and it was critical to maintaining our emotional and physical health during this trying time. The lockdown lasted nearly two months, during which time Italy was placed under complete lockdown and declared a red zone. Everyone was suffering as a result of not being able to travel anywhere, much alone take a walk outside. It was a difficult situation, especially because we were in a foreign country and our families in the United States were concerned. When I went to the grocery store and stepped outside one time, it felt as if no one else existed; the roads were deserted, the air was still, and I felt as if I was the only one in the town.
• 
  2020-03

  empty shelves

  My plaque story begins in March 2020, right in the middle of my senior year of my senior year of high school. that day we were let out of school for, what we were told, 2 weeks. One of my friends was away at a baseball camp that night and he had left his car in our school parking lot so me and my friends decided to go to the grocery store, buy a bunch of Saran Wrap, and Saran Wrap his car. At this point the amount that the pandemic would affect our lives hadn't sank in yet but when we got to the grocery store to buy the wrap we saw a very surreal sight. Hundreds of people were there wearing masks and gloves, and even goggles. People were buying canned food and toilet paper in mass quantities and there were numerous empty shelves. It looked like something out of a movie and that's when it began to sink in how crazy the situation was. that same week I remember going hiking with a couple of my friends and talking about the pandemic. I remember us wondering if anyone that we knew would end up getting the virus or if it would fizzle out before it hit Pennsylvania and if or when we would go back to school to finish our senior year. It turned out that we would never go back and "two weeks to slow the spread" turned into months and then years. It is now February 2022 and our lives are still being turned upside down by this pandemic. All we can do now is hope that things eventually return to normal and that we as humans can learn from the mistakes made during this pandemic.
• 
  2020-04-14

  Reflections of a Grocery Worker

  This photograph is a selfie photo from my time working at my local grocery store in Wakefield, Rhode Island, USA. I don't have many photos from this period that reflect the pandemic and my memories of it, but this photo represents the early days as the USA first began to adopt masking after the CDC realized that non-symptomatic spread was happening. Experiencing the pandemic through the lens of a grocery store was very interesting. It was a unique perspective for understanding different people's anxieties and doubts around the pandemic. It was also a strenuous place to be during the pandemic, having to constantly adapt to supply chain issues, worker shortages, and the mental strain of working in a likely unsafe environment. About a month into the pandemic I was asked to move from my home department of prepared foods, and help the grocery-stocking staff catch up with the unpredictable shipments coming in. Shortly after that, I was moved over to the front of the store to help keep count of the people in the store and encourage customers to use masks/hand sanitizer. I remember being met with a wide variety of gratitude, skepticism, resistance, and more--even including a lecture on covid as a conspiracy! At times, this role brought me anxiety as I saw news stories of door-people and security guards being killed or harmed for asking visiting customers to wear a mask. In a weird way, when I left my job to attend grad school at UMass Boston, I felt a bit of suvivor's guilt. Whenever I come home to Rhode Island, I hear that the folks at my old store continue to struggle even over a year deeper into the pandemic.
• 
  04/22/2021

  Holly Settles Oral History, 2021/04/22

  Andrew Butler conducts this interview Holly Settles, on April 22 at 10:04am. This is a part of the Covid 19 parject by Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis. This oral history interview discusses their experience through the covid 19 pandemic.
• 
  11/10/2020

  Kenneth and Wendy Moran Oral History, 2020/11/10

  C19OH
• 
  2020-06-01

  Retail in Covid

  As someone who works at a grocery store I was considered an “essential” worker during the height of the beginning of the pandemic I witnessed quite a bit. First off when it first started and people weren’t aware of what was going on people were confused and didn’t have any guidelines to follow. And thus unknowingly were spreading to the general public within the walls of my work place. Later when the safety measures were instilled there was a lot of push back from ignorant people not wanting to conform and wanted to be difficult causing workers to feel unsafe. Eventually most people followed the safety guidelines. But weren’t pleasant about it. There were many complaints of customers arguing with each other in an attempt to police each other. Not to mention the mask mandate was another issue. As employees we had to wear a mask for 8-10 straight while working. And while customers were in and out they refused to wear a mask properly and weren’t understanding to the fact that is as employees had to wear one all day so there’s no reason they can’t for the quick 30 minutes they are in the store. Then there were the out of stocks. Due to manufacturing/supply chain issues we were unable to keep shelves full. We would regularly have customers not understand what was going on and argue with employees that we weren’t doing our job because we couldn’t keep the store stocked. All in all the pandemic has shown me that the general public is mean and inconsiderate. We were already dealing with the fears of being forced to work in hazardous conditions and to top it off most customer interactions resulted in the employe being unnecessarily harassed in some manor or the other.
• 
  2020-04-11T16:55

  Standing in yellow box

  When covid-19 getting serious in April 2020, every store limits the capacity and people need to keep the social distance. It's my first time in life to see this beautiful and organized queue.
• 2021-10-06

  The Desperate Cling

  When the pandemic hit the small town I resided in March of 2019, the aftershock evoked a hopelessness that was unexpected. Growing up learning “stop, drop, and roll,” I presumed catching on fire was going to be much more problematic than pathetic trauma that has consumed my generation. In seventh grade, my school spent the day watching planes hit the towers on 9/11. Then that night watching the strength of my single mother dwindle while recording the news on VHS tapes. I believed my resilience created from the past had prepared me to get through this pandemic. I was much less resilient than I had anticipated. I worked as a barista in a grocery store and had seen the hatefulness and treatment this once friendly town provided. Before moving to this small town I would visit in the summer and found it difficult to understand how perfect strangers could treat each other like lifelong neighbors. The cloud that had fallen upon this town was shocking. 6am when the grocery doors opened I would watch what seemed to be half the town race with carts, baskets and bags to the designated “hot spots.” (Toilet paper, rice, beans, and bread) I watched as my co-workers were interrogated by their neighbors over product. My coffee kiosk was quiet compared to what it had been and that gave me time to observe the change in demeanor from my co-workers as well. The emotional exhaustion of their own fears along with half of the town coming in to dump their fears and baggage onto them as well; The physical exhaustion of working 60-70 days, pushing product and covering shifts. It was a mad house. It was hard to see the toll on such a warm and friendly town. Customers, co-workers, strangers would indulge dark, inappropriate and ugly opinions I had never expected, especially not in this sleepy town. I could feel the darkness and fear of other steeping into myself. It became difficult to be patient and interact with others. By the end of the day I would be so emotionally spent from pushing myself to be a courteous light for a beacon of all that sadness. I was bitter for this, finding it difficult to cling to my hope in humanity. I wasn’t anticipating this type of reaction from society when faced with such a colossal disaster like the world had reacted after 9/11. So in a way, I think I was resilient to the events but I was unprepared for the worlds reaction.
• 
  2020

  Humorous Memes about Coronavirus

  During quarantine I collected many humorous memes about staying at home and the problems that brought. All sorts of subjects were covered: cooking, getting along with your spouse/roommates, homeschooling the kids, learning to bake bread, being stuck at home, sanitizing, facemasks, people hoarding toilet paper, boredom, effects of isolation, etc. Here are a few of those memes.
• 
  2020-07-12

  Whole Foods cash register

  This is a photo I took on July 12, 2020, at the local Whole Foods, of a cash register. There is a plexiglass shield at the register, and a sign announcing a change in hours. The sign also promotes a biweekly special shopping session for the elderly and those at high risk for COVID-19.
• 
  2021-05-24

  A Memoir of 2020-2021: How COVID-19 Affected the Lifestyle of a High school Student

  The PDF tells the story of my life over the years from 2020-2021. It explains how covid affected the lifestyle of a high school student, with many other added details.
• 
  2020-03-06

  Food and House Supply Shortage

  When the pandemic first started people were out of control buying food and house supplies. There was a shortage on meat and the price rose up to an unreasonable price. Not only that the people were buying all the toilet paper. Like whom would have thought we will run out of toilet paper.
• 
  2020-03-06T14:57

  A Sign of Things to Come

  Early March 2020. We were out of toilet paper and stopped at the grocery store to get some. We sort of knew things were about to get crazy but this scene really cemented it for us. About a week later, LAUSD shut down for “two weeks.”
• 2021-01-28

  My Time with COVID-19

  Well, it finally happened. After social distancing for the better part of a year, I caught COVID-19 from a trip to the grocery store (I think). At first, it started off as any other normal cold, but it soon degraded into the worst fever I have ever had in my life. It felt as though my entire body were a blast furnace, and the bodily fatigue I felt made the experience a lot worse. I was barely able to stand up to close my bedroom blinds for most of my illness. Thankfully, my family supplied me with plenty of love, good medicine, water, hot tea, and books to help me recuperate over the course of these last few weeks. As of January 28th, I no longer feel any fatigue or fever, but my sense of smell has yet to return. Hopefully, it returns soon because I miss the smell of my mom's cooking! This experience really put this pandemic into perspective, and I hope everyone stays safe and takes extra precautions to avoid catching this disease. It is no joke and it will knock out young people for the better part of two weeks. Protect yourselves!
• 
  2021-01-24

  Grabbing for Groceries

  Grocery shopping is part of nearly everyone’s life. We’re used to going into a store at most hours of the day and night and finding what we need. Many of us eat out quite often so don’t stockpile food supplies at home and don’t cook at home very often. So grocery shopping pre-pandemic was a relatively easy and boring task. With the pandemic came restaurant closures and restrictions and people started eating at home more often. People started buying greater quantities of food and other grocery items (particularly toilet paper!), which led to shortages and quotas on the purchase of particular items. The grocery store became somewhat of a combat zone, with people battling each other for items and viewing others as the enemies who either were going to steal their food or give them the virus. The entire grocery shopping experience changed precipitously for most individuals and reflected a major shift in how society acquires and shares its food.
• 2021-01-20

  Consider some of the rules or procedures that you have to follow, and tell your feelings about them.

  There are so many rules and regulations we have to follow because of the covid 19 outbreak. For example, whenever we are indoors at a restaurant, a grocery store etc. We have to wear a face mask, which are supposedly keeping us from catching the virus. But it who knows if they really are doing anything, sure does not feel like it. In the state of California you can also not eat indoors, all restaurant seating as to be outside, but in LA county they have closed all restaurant seating. All stores currently have a maximum capacity for how many people they are aloud to have in the store at a time. Just for me to get in the store to get groceries or something you have to wait in line! It is really annoying. They have closed hair, and nail salons, so no one can go and get there hair or nails done! Furthermore, to go to certain vacation spots you have to be tested for corona. Like Hawaii, since I am supposed to go for this upcoming ski week, I will have to get a negative covid test before I am aloud on the plain to go to Hawaii. I cannot wait to go back to normal when we do not have all these regulations controlling our lives.
• 2021-01-19

  The rules and procedures of Covid 19

  Because of Covid, we have to wear a mask if we go anywhere besides our house. I personally do not like wearing a mask at all and I think they are hard to breathe in and very annoying. We also have to social distance from other people at places like the grocery store. That means the stores can only have a certain number of people in them at a time. I think social distancing isn't a bad idea can it help with having germs from one person not spread to another. In the beginning of covid, we had to quarantine which means we couldn't leave the house unless it was necessary like going to the grocery store. I hated quarantining because it was very boring and I wanted to see my friends. Now we don't have to quarantine and we can see people. Also now all retail shops are open were in the beginning only grocery stores were open.
• 
  2020-12-09

  Testimony from a Grocery Store Worker

  "I have to clean the belt between customers, most people wear masks, some don't. Most people are impatient. You get the feeling that some people are stockpiling or hoarding. Some people wrap everything up multiple times, and some that don't care as much. If they don't wear masks we can't say anything"
• 
  2020-12-05

  Why Sobeys is saying yes to ‘hero pay’ and no to gouging suppliers: meet the man who’s putting values first in a time of crisis

  Sobey's agreeing to pay hero pay
• 
  2020-11-25

  Unimpressive WinCo Precautions

  While going grocery shopping for Thanksgiving, I was surprised to see this green bean display that people were going through with uncovered hands. Though most of the bulk goods at WinCo have been partitioned into pre-packaged bags, some of the produce is still open for people to touch. I know that COVID isn't highly transmissible via surface contact, but it was still off-putting to see people touching food that others would eat. I'll be washing my vegetables more thoroughly after seeing this!
• 
  2020-05-03

  " The man feeding a remote Alaska town with a Costco card and a ship " - The Hustle

  The advent of COVID-19 has made it more difficult for isolated, rural communities to maintain access to basic necessities such as food, water, and personal care products. In an article for the Hustle, journalist Zachary Crokett recounts the story of a Gustavus, Alaska grocer named Toshua Parker, who has taken it upon himself to supply the needs of his fellow townspeople in a time of crisis. Through the use of a shipping freighter, business connections, and a trusty Costco membership card, Parker has mostly succeeded in supplying the community's consumer needs and has made his business, Toshco, an economic pillar of Gustavus. The success of Parker's small, rural business in the face of COVID-19, according to Crockett, is representative of a "renaissance" of rural businesses, which are an important component of supplying a town's consumer needs. Without these businesses, isolated rural communities such as Gustavus would have a harder time enduring the pandemic relative to communities with robust economic centers.
• 
  2020-11-19

  Anonymous Oral History, 2020/11/19

  The interviewee discusses her life and daily activities during the COVID-19 pandemic. She addresses her role as an essential employee while caring for her family.
• 
  2020-03-20

  A Sight to Be Seen

  The photograph that is attached is a picture that I took while in the grocery store on March 20, 2020, and I remember the sight and the moment vividly. Much like the rest of the nation, I wasn't really sure how to make meaning of the recent events that were taking place across the world and, beginning in March, starting to take place in our very nation. COVID-19 was still something I didn't quite understand, but what I did know is that it was coming, whatever that meant. My apartment is roughly three blocks from this grocery store, so naturally I went there often to buy things that I needed. On this day, earlier in the morning, I remember showing up to the front door and there were massive crowds of people not only outside, but in the aisles as well, and especially in one specific aisle. I began to ask myself "why is everyone cramming into that specific aisle? There isn't even food over there on that side of the grocery store." Come to find out, these people, much like people across the nation, were mobbing the stores and buying massive amounts of...toilet paper? Yes, exactly - toilet paper. I decided that I wasn't going to get what I needed in these crowds, so I left, aiming to come back later that evening. The attached picture is on my return trip on the night of March 20, when I walked down the aisle that everyone was clustered into in an attempt to see the aftermath. Every shelf that had toilet paper that morning was completely empty, which was a sight that I can't say that I have ever seen before. I was left not only amazed, but confused as to what prompted these people to collect toilet paper in the face of a global pandemic. If the nation were shutting down for a period of time and a national quarantine was on the brink, wouldn't canned foods, water bottles, and various other items take precedent over toilet paper? Just a thought. This event made my mind up that the year 2020 was going to be a year that would not be forgotten, and this picture, to me, stands as a picture of the very moment I had that realization.
• 
  2020-04-20

  Grocery Shopping During a Pandemic

  When COVID-19 became classified as a pandemic the United States started to shut down. As a result, grocery stores experienced long lines and shortages. Toilet paper, bathroom essentials, and cleaning supplies quickly sold out and became a difficult commodity to purchase. These shortages went on for months. The importance of this is to demonstrate how unprepared humanity is for an event like COVID-19. Seeing these pictures and experiencing the long lines and shortages for myself made me realize how dependant I am on the grocery store. This experience gave me a sense of awareness. I became aware of how easy it was for me to go to the local grocery store and get what I needed before COVID-19; additionally, I became aware of how quickly that can change.
• 2020-10-08

  When Netflix binges lead to philosophical contemplation

  During the time of social distancing I have embarked on many a Netflix binge, as have so many others. Today I want to reference one line from one particular show that has been stuck in my head these past few months. “What We Owe To Each Other” is a line in the NBC series The Good Place, and is referencing the title of a book by T. M. Scanlon. The show deals with complex moral, philosophical, and even religious questions in a quirky, humorous way. I did not have much philosophy knowledge when I started watching The Good Place, nor have I read Scanlon’s book, but the show fulfilled its purpose in getting me to think a little more critically about the world around me, and to ask myself “what do we owe each other?” At this point in time everyone, myself included, is starting to feel the fatigue of living in a pandemic for months. It’s easy to think only of ourselves, of the things we’re missing out on. But what if instead we think about what we owe each other? Yes, wearing a mask can be inconvenient, but I owe it to the people I pass by in the grocery store not to intentionally put them at risk for infection. Their lives are equally valuable to mine. When I look at someone as I walk past them I think about what their story might be. Do they have children? Grandchildren? An elderly relative they care for? An underlying medical condition? What hopes and dreams do they have for the future? And shouldn’t I do everything in my power to help keep those things safe? When I think of it in those terms suddenly wearing a mask doesn’t seem all that difficult. I work in the healthcare field. You may think that means I’m going to talk about what we owe each other in a caregiver/patient relationship, but I feel like the previous paragraph applies in that scenario too. What I actually want to talk about is what we owe each other in an employer/employee relationship. Healthcare and other essential workers have been lauded as heroes by the media and the public, and I have received many emails from leadership at work thanking everyone for their hard work during these trying times. But what do words mean, if not accompanied by actions? We live in a capitalist society, and healthcare is not immune from profit-driven business practices. At my job, in order to recover from financial losses, leadership has decided not to give raises next year, and also to stop contributing to our retirement plans. This is in addition to cutting hours with mandatory use of paid time off hours, while still holding the same productivity expectations. But is that really what we owe each other? What about an employee’s children? Grandchildren? Responsibilities? Hopes and dreams for the future? If I can be ok with being inconvenienced to protect the lives and livelihood of strangers in the grocery store, can they not be inconvenienced for me? I believe that, in general, individuals are good. But as a society we have a long way to go.
• 
  10/03/2020

  Lucy Li Oral History, 2020/10/03

  Lucy Li speaks on her experience during the COVID-19 pandemic, including the cleaning ritual she has developed, her new recognition of the need for social interaction, remote work and school, and how the economy’s dip will affect her generation. She finds work-life-school balance, feeling stuck in her apartment, and connection with others challenging. She finds that nihilistic memes, social media management strategy, and park walks with friends keep her grounded. Li finds hope in community resilience.
• 
  2020-03-31

  Coronavirus shoppers

  This comic shows how much of an impact the coronavirus had on grocery stores and shoppers. It also shows how people could have overreacted to the fact that they can't find toilet paper or foods like spaghetti sauce. The main focus of this comic though is the doctor who is looking at the other row of shelves. The shelves are labeled, "face masks," "test kits," and "ventilators." This shows how not only food was a shortage, but also very important medical supplies that were needed to keep people alive. This is important to me because it shows the different struggles between everyday necessities, and what people need to stay alive.
• 
  2020-06-01

  Anger, Uncertainty, and Fear Felt Nationwide: Reverberations in San Francisco

  These photos portray the heightened social and political tensions that occurred after George Floyd's death. Systematic racism, marginalization, and police brutality sparked an increase in civil unrest, resulting in a mandated curfew in San Francisco. Floyd's tragic death caused rioting, protesting, and looting nationwide, concurrently taking place during the worsening pandemic of COVID-19. As many businesses closed their doors, many closing for good, few essential businesses such as Safeway stayed open. Strict policies in regards to wearing faces masks, social distancing as well as more intensive cleaning measures, were enforced to ensure the safety of the community at large. In short, the photos of store policies depict the rapid changes that were implemented in response to COVID-19. The rest of the photos show how our store took cover during the intense rioting that spiked in late May and early June. A few depict the aftermath of the looting at a local Safeway branch; the store that I worked at was not unscathed in the looting scene. I hid with a couple of employees in the manager's office, on the phone with police, as people broke in. This is just a small glimpse into a larger event that reverberated nationwide, sparking massive outcry, and hushed voices to rise as many sheltered during this pandemic.
• 
  2020-03

  Working at Weggies

  I started working at my job at Wegmans in January 2020. As a cashier, pandemic or not, you encounter many people. When the pandemic hit, everything changed so fast and so drastically. There were so many rules about employees washing hands frequently to mandatory masks to social distancing in line. They even limited how many people were in the store at a time. My job did the best they could given the circumstances, but it was still scary going to work. This virus does not make it easy to identify who has it and who does not. Whenever you go out, please where a mask and stand back. You don’t know how many people the employees see daily.
• 
  2022-04-13

  Wegmans’ Social Distancing Policy 04/2020

  Wegmans’ grocery store has pieces of tape on the ground to help enforce the social distancing rules. They also have signs on the ground to explain the meaning of the tape.
• 
  07/26/2020

  Alexandra Phan Oral History, 2020/07/26

  Alexandra "Alex" Phan shares her experience of the pandemic. Alex is a Master's student at the University of Ottawa studying Virology and working in a lab which focuses on emerging viruses- most recently SARS-COV-2 (Covid-19). She describes her activities during the pandemic and the sense that she and other researchers are somewhat removed from the collective trauma the rest of the world is experiencing, as their routines have not changed drastically. She also discusses the changes in student life and what it is like moving out of your parents house/living on your own for the first time in the midst of a tiered lock-down.
• 
  2020-04-12

  Take-Out Menus for Local Restaurants

  Usually, my family tries not to order take-out too often, opting to cook something instead. However, to minimize trips to the grocery store we have been ordering food from local places like End Zone, Dom’s, and Bubbles. Aside from visiting grocery stores less frequently, ordering from local restaurants helps support them financially as well.
• 2020-08-04

  Hand Sanatier

  Ever since the beginning of the pandemic, we have been very careful when we handle goods that we buy from the grocery store. We also use our hand sanitizer to kill the germs that we may have on our hands. I submitted this because hand sanitizer is a big part of staying safe and killing germs to reduce the chance of obtaining COVID-19.
• 
  2020-07-16

  Masks and Violence: Ontario man dies in police shooting after mask dispute in grocery store

  An article relaying an incident which encompasses two of the largest issues facing Canada, and Ontario, specifically at the moment: the coronavirus (and subsequent public health measures) and changing views on the role of police in society. A 78 year old man was shot and killed by police after if he refused to wear a mask in a supermarket in cottage country north of Toronto. He then assaulted an employee and drove off recklessly, prompting police to attend his house to arrest him, where the fatal incident occurred. The body responsible for the investigation of this and other police involved deaths in Ontario, the SIU, has come under scrutiny this year as social justice advocates feel it is inappropriate for a watch dog body to be made up largely of retired police officers is not impartial.
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  2020-07-07

  "PPE Circa 1348," in 2020

  A photograph shared on a private facebook group as having an unknown origin. The photograph depicting a person in full imitation medieval armour, waving at the camera, in a grocery store. The individual is pushing a cart full of groceries and has a paper sign pinned to their chest which reads "PPE CIRCA 1348"
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  2020-07-06

  Wash Hands Before Entering

  These photographs taken of the east side of a local Wichita grocery store depict the continuing efforts businesses are taking to stem the spread of the coronavirus. Positioned just off the east parking lot, this recently-installed hand-washing station makes clear in both English and Spanish that it is not for any use other than sanitation. With medical professionals touting masks and thorough, 20-second hand-washing as some of the most effective means of prevention, images like this reflect how stores are attempting to ensure customer and employee safety as much as possible by making hygienic facilities as widely available as possible, even before a customer even enters the store.
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  2020-07-03

  Tensions are High in the Grocery Store Produce Section

  This cartoon show the new frustrations with wearing masks.
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  2020-05-26

  No Mask, No Service

  I went to the grocery story with my 83 year old grandmother and was more than a little irritated to see that so many people were refusing to wear a mask. It gave me an uneasy feeling. My grandmother who lives alone and very far from any family, has no choice but to leave her home to buy necessities. I am worried for her safety.
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  2020-03-24

  Sending pictures to my parents that I am good

  This was the initial time of the self-quarantine. My parents wanted to know if we had sufficient supply to live. I had taken this photo in the supermarket nearby.
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  2020-05-25

  Furious mob descends on woman who didn't wear a mask in a grocery store: ‘Get the f*** out of here!’

  Pandemic causes people to have mob mentalities and gang up on a woman.
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  2020-05-23

  Return of the Paper

  A photograph of bathroom tissue in stock on store shelves. An indicator that the initial panic that consumed the United States is passing, with a humorous twist.
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  03/15/2020

  Covid-19 Empty Store Shelves

  The fact that people will go to stores and take everything there instead of only what is needed causing more issues. *From Date: Mar 15, 2020 8:59 am
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  03/18/2020

  A Von's store in Redondo Beach with nearly empty shelves at the beginning of California's lockdown.

  On a trip to the grocery store at the beginning of California's lockdown, the dairy section in a local Von's is almost wiped out. The majority of the store looked similar to this with empty shelves everywhere and slim pickings for essentials available. #HST580 #Arizona State University
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  2020-05-14

  Front Door Banners

  Various grocery stores have implemented additional safety policies as the pandemic has worn on in Orange County. At the outset of California's quarantine there was a limit of one in, one out at this particular store. That has been amended, and now there are various markers throughout the store emphasizing: social distancing, not unnecessarily touching things, safety guidelines, and a banner of appreciation for people that continue to shop. *Joey Dorion took the photograph *Photograph of banners