Blue rimmed button with red and white stripes in the middle featuring white and blue text on the stripes. 

The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAMAW) began in 1888 for railroad mechanics to resist wage cuts as the Order of United Machinists and Mechanical Engineers before changing to the National Assembly of Machinists (NAM) in 1889. In the early 1890’s NAM reached Canada and the name was once again changed, this time to the International Association of Machinists (IA of M). This was later changed to IAMAW in 1964.

Blue and white illustration of a bear on an orange background with blue text and orange and white text

Led by coach Mike Ditka, the 1985 Chicago Bears championship football team was widely regarded as one of the most dominant in NFL history. The Bears went 15-1 in the regular season, did not allow the New York Giants to score any points in the divisional round of playoffs, and held the Los Angeles Rams scoreless to win the NFC Championship. The team then went on to defeat the New England Patriots 46-10 to win the Super Bowl. The roster included quarterback Jim McMahon, defensive tackle William "Refrigerator" Perry and running back Walter Payton. 

Yellow and red text on a red and yellow background

On July 18, 1985, three Chicago Tribune unions walked out on bargaining sessions for new contracts.  The unions that went on strike totaled over 700 workers and were the Chicago Typographical Union No. 16, Chicago Web Pressmen’s Union Local 7 and Chicago Mailers Union Local 2. 

A year later 68 bargaining sessions had been attempted, and the newspaper had replaced a majority of the strikers with new employees. Teamster Union drivers crossed picket lines, honoring the no-strike clause in their contract.  Seven other unions also crossed picket lines.  The union leaders hoped to succeed in garnering support for the strike with 100,000 newspaper subscription cancellations.  However, there was a lack of public interest in the strike, and the newspaper reported around 5,200 subscription cancellations were attributed to the walkout. 

Red upper third with red band with white dots, red text on white background on lower two-thirds. 

The Chicago Cardinals were a professional football team that played in Chicago, Illinois from 1920 to 1959, before first becoming the St. Louis Cardinals from 1960 to 1987, and then moving to their now-current home in the Phoenix area, as the Arizona Cardinals. In 1920, the Racine Cardinals joined the American Professional Football Association, which became the National Football League in 1922 and changed the name to the Chicago Cardinals. The Cardinals and the Chicago Bears (originally the Decatur Staleys) are the only charter members of the  NFL still in existence. The Cardinals were one of the few teams with African-American players in the 1920's, signing the first two black lineman in the NFL, Duke Slater and Harold Bradley, Sr. However, the racism in professional baseball seeped into professional football, and in both the 1927 and 1929 seasons, Slater was the only African-American player in the league. In 1929, Slater set a record with six rushing touchdowns. 

The Chicago Cardinals won only one championship, and it was highly controversial. The championship was determined by winning percentage, and the second-place Cardinals were offered the award after the league stripped the title from the Pottsville Maroons, for playing an unauthorized exhibition game. Cardinals owner Chris O'Brien refused the championship title, arguing that his team did not deserve to take it over a team who had defeated them fairly. It was not until Cardinals' ownership changed hands to the Bidwell family in 1933 that the franchise claimed the 1925 title. The Chicago Cardinals are also the only team in American professional football history to score exactly four points in one game, losing to the Racine Legion by a score of 10-4 in 1923. 

White button with blue text. Images of stars go down the sides of the button and in the center is a shield that is red while and blue. 

The Series E U.S. Savings Bonds were marketed from 1941 to 1980 by the United States as war bonds. The Fourth War Loan Drive, one of eight drives used to raise funds during World War II, lasted from January 18 to February 15, 1944. This segment of the drive targeted farmers and women. Though the initial goal of this drive was to raise $14 billion, the final sales equaled $16.7 billion.

The Kearney and Trecker company designed and manufactured the “Milwaukee” series milling machines and as members of the farming industry they may have assisted in the promotion of the drive. 

White button with black text around a black and white photo of Emiliano Zapata with bandoleers over his shoulders

This button was made by the United Farm Workers, a union of Filipino and Mexican American farm workers, in the 1970s. The United Farm Workers were led by Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta and won the right to organize farm workers after the Delano grape boycott in 1965-1970. The words Viva La Huelga, meaning long live the strike, are the rallying cry of the United Farm Workers. 

The picture is of Emiliano Zapata, a leader of the 1910 Mexican Revolution. Zapata called for a redistribution of land and is remembered in Mexico today as a supporter of peasants and Native Americans. He became a central symbol of the United Farm Workers and the Delano Grape Boycott.

White button with red text around the edge with three navy blue fighter jet illustrations featured in the middle. 

The logo featured on this button is from a recruitment poster for the U.S. Army Air Corps during World War II, shown here. The image was published by the U.S. Army Recruiting Publicity Bureau in 1941.  

Purple text on white background with purple Aztec eagle in center. 

Beginning in September 1965, the Delano grape strike was organized by the Agricultural Workers Organizing Committee and the United Farm Workers against grape growers in California. The strike lasted over five years and ended with a consumer boycott of nonunion grapes.The strike began when farm workers refused to work while demanding federal minimum wages. The strike gained national attention and by 1970, the UFW was able to reach a collective bargaining agreement with the grape growers.

Illustration of banana with red "NO" symbol through it with black text on a white background.  Small United Farm Workers emblem next to banana.

In 1979, the United Farm Workers (UFW) called for a boycott of Chiquita bananas. The boycott was in response to low wages that farm workers received from Chiquita and was part of a series of strikes and boycotts organized by the UFW in the 1970s. The UFW demanded that grocery stores across the U.S. not stock Chiquita bananas and attempted to raise money in order to support the workers and their families.

This button was designed by Danny Flores of La Paz Keen, California at the request of Cesar Chavez. They were printed in 1978 -1979

Illustration of a red lipped toothy grin on a green background

James Earl Carter Jr., better known as Jimmy Carter, was the 39th president of the United States between 1977 to 1981. After serving a term as Georgia governor between 1971 and 1975, Carter began his campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination. As he was quite unknown outside of his home state of Georgia, Carter's campaign centered around his every-man anonymity and peanut farming background -- a breath of fresh air after the public's confidence in the government took a hit with both the Vietnam War and the Watergate scandal. During his surprisingly successful rise to the presidency, Carter became known for his trademark toothy grin which was plastered across campaign buttons, banners, masks, and even peanut paraphernalia.