![]() Both perspectives are equally valid and combined paint a picture of America’s complex relationship with both war and peace. To some, the peace flag defaces the traditional stars and stripes and comes across as a mockery of American values and sacrifices. However, to those who believed in the need to go to war in Vietnam, and those who fought there, this flag can stir up the opposite emotion. To those flying the flag for the cause of peace, the meaning was positive: a hopeful symbol for a more ideal nation, with American people united and stronger in peace than they ever could be at war. The peace flag was most commonly flown at anti-war demonstrations and rock festivals, but also used as wall decorations, particularly in college dorm rooms. flag, was used in the United States in the late 1960s in opposition to the Vietnam War. This hybrid flag, which places a peace symbol in the blue field of the U.S. Peace Flag, Bethel Woods collection Gift of Mark Shustak But there’s one use of the peace symbol that isn’t as free-spirited and unencumbered as the others: The Peace Flag. ![]() So how has the peace symbol been used in the 1960s and beyond? Since it is a fair use image, it can (and has been!) put on anything: buttons, t-shirts, posters – you name it. Holton, the peace symbol will always stand as a free and accessible symbol of peace to whoever wants to use it. Image: The Times (UK)įun Fact: The designer behind the peace symbol, a British man named Gerald Holton, decided to never copyright his design so that anyone could use it free of licensing restraints. Gerald Holton & original peace symbol design. Anti-War and Civil Rights activists took on the symbol for nuclear disarmament as a symbol for all peaceful causes. In the United States, along with the underlying threat of the Cold War and nuclear disaster, additional tensions brought on by the Vietnam War and the fight for Civil Rights ramped up the movement for peace. The call for the disarming of nuclear weapons around the world argued that peace amongst nations could never be achieved while even just one of them harbored these weapons of mass destruction.Īnd so, Nuclear Disarmament, N.D., gave us the peace symbol as we know it today. Then, the Cold War brought a constant threat of nuclear destruction. The use of nuclear warheads by the United States against Japan in World War II had proven just how catastrophic such weapons can be. Semaphore positions for “N” & “D” Image: Īt this point you may be asking: what do “N” and “D” have to do with the peace symbol? Well, now we’re getting to the bottom of it! You see, “N” and “D” stand for “ Nuclear Disarmament.” Nuclear Disarmament was a movement that emerged after the Second World War. So, how does semaphore translate into the peace symbol? Well, it’s very simple: the semaphore positions for the letters N (where the flagger stands with their arms in an inverted “V”) and D (where the flagger stands with one arm straight up above their head, and the other straight down) when combined form the inner line structure of the symbol. Semaphore is traditionally employed by seafarers who use flags held in different positions to communicate across distances, such as between two ships at sea. ![]() ![]() Though this symbol is so closely associated with anti-war (and sometimes by extension anti-military sentiments), its very design was inspired by naval semaphore code. Now, on to the peace symbol! While with one glance its meaning is apparent, to understand the origin of the peace symbol, we must look closer. Though, if you find yourself around the Museum you might see the peace sign used as a COVID-friendly greeting! This interpretation of the gesture is mostly what it is used for today. Nixon famously used it also to mean “victory.” Though Nixon was a pro-war president in the 1960s and ’70s, anti-war activists at the same time co-opted the “V” sign to identify themselves as peace-seekers. Instead, it originated as a way to show “V” for “Victory” during World War II. You’ve probably flashed a peace sign before, using your index and middle fingers to make a “V.” Though it’s called a sign, similar to gestures used in sign language, this one is not the actual gesture for “peace” in American Sign Language. The Museum at Bethel Woods Assistant Curator Julia Fell explores the history of the peace symbol and how it became an important symbol of Woodstock.įirst thing’s first: Did you know there is a difference between peace “sign” and peace “symbol?” There is! Let's get into it.
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