Black text on a green background

Adcraft Manufacturing Company was founded in 1976 in Broadview, IL. It is a privately held company that manufactures plastics products. This button is a sample used as an example of how their buttons can be used as employee badges. Adcraft employs a staff of about 100 people as of 2018.

Illustration of a musical note in front of the Chicago skyline on a light yellow background

This button was likely designed to show a love for the music of Chicago, Illinois. The famous Chicago skyline is featured in many illustrations and is often distinguishable because of the inclusion of the John Hancock Center and it’s “X” designs seen on the outside of the building. 

Black text over a blue circle with white text on it and black text around the outer edge of the button on a white background

While the exact origin of the button itself is currently unknown, this design is clearly meant to emulate the logo of the Hard Rock Cafe. 

Illustration of an American flag and a lit match with a red no symbol 

This button is against the buring of the American flag. In 1989, (Texas v. Johnson) and in 1990 (U.S v. Eichman), the United States Supreme Court ruled that due to the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, it is unconstitutional for a government to prohibit the desecration of a flag, due to the freedom of “symbolic speech.” In 1990, Congress tried to pass a federal law barring flag burning, but the Supreme Court denied it. A Flag Desecration Amendment to the U.S. Constitution has been proposed repeatedly since 1989, but in 2006 failed to pass. 

White and blue text on top of an American flag background

MoveOn is a web-based organizing platform that uses the connective power of the Internet to allow people to become more involved in politics and the democratic process. MoveOn is most known for providing its members with a platform to  create campaigns and petitions for social change. MoveOn is divided into two distinct organizations: MoveOn Civic Action, a 501(c)(4) nonprofit, and MoveOn Political Action, a federal political action committee (PAC). MoveOn Civic Action, which regularly recruits volunteers, supports left-leaning causes and organizes in support of liberal Democratic politicians.

Red text on a white background

The Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD) is the domestic anti-poverty program of the U.S. Catholic Bishops founded in 1970 to fulfill the mission of educating the masses on poverty and its causes.The United States Catholic Conference (USCC) was founded in 1966 as a secular arm of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops (NCCB), in order to fulfill the new requirements for national conferences of bishops. The USCC focused on the work in society at large, while the NCCB resolved to solve internal ecclesiastical concerns. The two organizations merged together to form the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) in 2002. 

"If you want peace, work for justice" was a quote made by Pope VI (1897-1978) in his message for the Celebration of the Day of Peace on January 1, 1972. 

Illustration of four children holding a white sign with black text on it on a white background

This button promotes a New York education program called Children First, which was announced by Mayor Bloomberg of New York City in 2003. Bloomberg wanted to reform the local public schools and increase student test scores. To achieve these goals, the education system was centralized under the Mayor's control and school districts were combined. The program trained principles to make decisions and then gave them more control to budget and hire for their schools since they were closer to the classroom and could see student needs better. They created smaller schools to reduce dropout rates by giving students more personal attention and allowing students some choice in which high school they attend. They allocated more per pupil funds to schools with special education students and English learners rather than allocating money based on the salaries of the teachers. The success of these reforms has been strongly debated since Bloomberg left office in 2013.

Illustration of a white turn arrow pointing to the left with a red stripe going diagonally across the button and white text above the arrow on a blue background.

This button was used in John Milan Ashbrook's campaign for Presidency in 1972. Ashbrook was running against the incumbent President Richard Nixon as an alternative conservative candidate. 

The button became a famous symbol among the conservatives, as it symbolized their frustration with Nixon, whom they saw as having abandoned conservative principles and "turned left" on foreign and domestic issues. During his first term, Nixon had resumed relationship with the People's Republic of China, pursued détente with the Soviet Union, and launched a series of liberal domestic policies such as canceling the convertibility of US dollars to the gold standard and endorsing Equal Rights Amendments; those policies had subsequently raised eyebrows from his fellow Republicans.

Although Ashbrook's campaign was unsuccessful, its messages had resonated with many conservatives, and thus paved ways for the ascent of Ronald Reagan in 1980. 

Brown text and an illustration of a beaver's head wearing glasses on a yellow background

This button was created as a playful promotional item for selling mass-market paperbacks. It features a cartoon beaver and the phrase “I’m eager to sell mass paperbacks!”—a pun based on the idiom “eager beaver.” This expression can carry both positive and negative meanings: it may describe someone energetic and hardworking, or it can be used sarcastically to suggest someone is trying too hard. In the case of the button, the tone is cheerful and positive, with the beaver image emphasizing enthusiasm and motivation.

Research suggests that the beaver character was once associated with the Tattered Cover Book Store, a well-known independent bookseller based in Denver, CO. While the store does carry branded merchandise today, there are no official records indicating this character was part of its history. It’s more likely that the button was part of a broader marketing effort during the rise of paperback sales, designed to draw attention to book promotions in a lighthearted, engaging way.

White text on a brown background

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