| The peace symbol has become the universally | | | | peace symbol represents the letter "D" while the |
| recognized icon of peace. Though most | | | | two lower bars form the letter "N". The letters |
| Americans identify it with the Vietnam War | | | | themselves stand for "Nuclear Disarmament". |
| protests of the 1960s, it was originally designed | | | | As it happened, an associate of Dr. Martin Luther |
| and used in Great Britain. | | | | King Jr. attended the London-to-Aldermaston |
| In 1958, the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament | | | | march and carried the peace symbol back across |
| wanted a symbol to be used at marches and | | | | the Atlantic with him. Thanks to that man, Bayard |
| sit-downs (which came to be known in the USA | | | | Ruston, the peace symbol quickly made its |
| as sit-ins). As it happened, Gerald Holtom, a | | | | appearance at civil rights marches in the USA. Its |
| professional graphic designer and member of the | | | | popularity spread and was used from the very |
| Direct Action Committee Against Nuclear War, | | | | beginning of our own anti-war movement that |
| had already created the symbol to be worn as a | | | | swept across the nation from college campuses |
| badge during a demonstration against | | | | to Washington, D.C. during the Vietnam War. It |
| Aldermaston, a British research center and | | | | also became a fashion statement of the time and |
| manufacturer of nuclear weapons. Ironically, the | | | | was often found embroidered on denim, splashed |
| CND was already planning an anti-nuclear march | | | | on posters, and crafted into jewelry. |
| from London to Aldermaston during Easter | | | | While doves and olive branches are also |
| weekend of that year. The two got together and | | | | associated with peace, Holtom's design endures as |
| it was during that march that the peace symbol | | | | the iconic universal symbol of peace. Today, the |
| made its first appearance. | | | | peace symbol is enjoying a resurgence of |
| Many have speculated about the origin of the | | | | popularity in the field of fashion. While some |
| design itself. As with most things, it's much simpler | | | | people still wear it as an anti-war statement, |
| than most try to make it. The vertical bar and | | | | others wear it as a symbol of universal |
| shorter bars are found in the alphabet of Navy | | | | brotherhood or a touchstone for tranquility. The |
| Semaphore flags. The letter "N" is represented by | | | | classic design of the peace symbol will endure for |
| holding a pair of flags down and outward at a 45 | | | | generations to come, because the desire for |
| degree angle, one flag in each hand. The letter "D" | | | | peace never goes out of style. |
| is signified by holding both flags in a vertical | | | | Click here for handcrafted Peace plaques and |
| position, one flag directly overhead, the other | | | | jewelry. |
| straight downward. So the vertical bar of the | | | | |