Poster: Buttons of the Cause (1960-2003)

http://www.donnellycolt.com/catalog/product638.html

        This poster depicts over 370 activist buttons, representing over 200 historic causes. It was created based on the collection of a personal collector, and is sold by Donnelly/Colt Progressive Resources, a company which designs and distributes materials that promote social justice, peace, and human rights. It would be an asset to any upper elementary, middle, or high school classroom, especially those that engage with the politics and conflicts surrounding historical moments. This particular poster displays buttons that were used to make statements about a number of issues through American and global history, including the Civil Rights Movement, the Vietnam War, the LGBTQ rights movement, and many more. In addition to the buttons, the poster also includes footnotes which provide context for the buttons’ messages.

        This poster is valuable because it acknowledges and brings attention to the activist movements that shaped history. The collector who created the poster made a point to show both sides of every issue depicted on it, and, in this way, the poster highlights way that history is multifaceted and more complicated than it often seems in textbooks. For every pro-war button there is a button calling for peace; for every button calling for integration there is a button calling for segregation. In this way, this visual frames history as a series of ideological conflicts, the outcomes of which shaped the way that we view history.

        For a teacher displaying this poster in the classroom, it is important that it is acknowledged to be more than just wallpaper. Active engagement with such visuals is important to help students create meaning and to allow it to spark meaningful discussion. A teacher should take advantage of this poster by referring to it whenever the opportunity arises; there is no doubt that a discussion of any contemporary cause would benefit from a discussion about contemporary reactions to it. It is also important that the teacher acknowledges that some of the views and positions represented on this poster would now be considered problematic, even if at the time they had supporters. Contextualizing discussions of the buttons in a history of progress towards more comprehensive human rights is important. This poster cannot stand alone in the classroom, and instead should be used as a supplement to classroom lessons and discussions.