Blue text on a white background with a brown mug of beer. Red, white, and blue ribbon with gold lettering and a golden airplane.

This anti-prohibition button portrays the popular slogan, "We Want Beer." Many Americans shared the sentiment, including US troops coming back from foreign wars to discover one of their favorite freedoms had been taken away. Prohibition was mandated in the US in 1920 by the Eighteenth Amendment to the Constitution and repealed in 1933 with the ratification of the Twenty-first Amendment. 

This button also serves as a celebratory souvenir of Charles Lindbergh's return to America after his famous 1927 flight to France on the Spirit of St. Louis. Lindbergh is famous for being the first person to pilot a nonstop transatlantic flight solo. In addition to his success as an aviator and explorer, he was also a military officer in the Army Air Corps Reserve. He was awarded the Model of honor for his flight. 

Green square around the ecology symbol with a red raised fist inside it on a white background

The ecology symbol was designed by cartoonist Ron Cobb in 1969 and was placed in the public domain so that it soon took off and became and iconic symbol of the 1970s, seen on buttons, T-shirts and posters. The ecology symbol, together with the raised fist, was a symbol of solidarity of the new ecology movement and a call to action to save the environment. The 1970s saw the first era of environmental awareness in the United States that resulted in the birth of the ecology movement, Earth Day, recycling, and the concept of being “green”.

Black text on a florescent orange background

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Illustration of a female wearing blue coveralls and a red and white polka dot bandana in her hair on a yellow background with a blue text bubble above with white text in it

We Can Do It was a propaganda poster designed in 1943 by graphic artist J. Howard Miller for the Westinghouse Corporation. The illustration is often mistakenly referred to as Rosie the Riveter (the true Rosie the Riveter artwork was painted by Norman Rockwell for the cover of the May 29, 1943 edition of the Saturday Evening Post). Miller’s poster was designed to encourage females to join the workforce during the Second World War, in order to help industries on the home front meet production demands. Today, We Can Do It continues to be reprinted as a symbol of determination and accomplishment.

Illustration of a black and white earth with colorful animals on top on a white background with black text along the bottom

Human-i-tees was an environmental t-shirt company in the 1990s that donated part of their profits from their environmentally themed products, like this button, to environmental projects in local communities. This button's message is that animals should not be mistreated and displaced because they were here before humans, which gives them the right to the land and natural resources they need to live. 

Red text along the top edge wtih three photographs of men's heads on a white background

Seen on the button are John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Robert F. Kennedy, all of whom were civil rights activists and were assassinated. Robert F. Kennedy worked for civil rights for African Americans. John F. Kennedy delivered his Civil Rights Address on June 11, 1963 in which he proposed the Civil Rights Act of 1964. It was also in 1963 that Martin Luther King, Jr. launched a campaign of mass protests in Birmingham, Alabama, and would later delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. Both John F. Kennedy and Robert F. Kennedy worked together to pass the Civil Rights Act. These three men fought, campaigned, and died for the civil rights of Americans. 

Illustration of a red shield with white text on it on a white cirlce with a dark blue outer edge with white text on it

The Salvation Army was founded in England by William Booth and his wife, Catherine, in 1865. Booth conducted evangelical meetings throughout England, preaching to the poor and destitute. By 1867, The Salvation Army also began to offer a number of social assistance programs. The first meeting of the Salvation Army in the United States was organized by Eliza Shirley and was held in Philadelphia in 1879.

During the First World War, the Salvation Army provided a number of services to aid on the war effort. On the home front, Salvationists organized the collection of linens to be made into bandages and recruited volunteers to help create care packages for those fighting overseas. The Salvation Army also set up service centres next to military bases on the home front which provided canteens, recreational facilities, meeting rooms, libraries, and religious services.

Black text on a yellow background

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Brown text on a yellow background

This button supports the cause of legalizing prostitution; often called the oldest profession in the world. Prostitution is illegal in the United States, with the exception of parts of Nevada, yet it is practiced in every state. There are those who believe that criminalizing prostitution should help to stop it; yet statistics on arrests for prostitution prove otherwise. Others believe that the government should not, and cannot, legislate morals and that no one should be forcibly prevented from acting in any way they choose, provided the acts are not invasive of the free acts of others. Proponents for legalizing prostitution believe that if the act is truly consensual, it is a business transaction and no harm is being done.