The peace symbol is a unique mid-20th- century creation, a product of recent history. What once started out as a symbol for a march protesting nuclear war became a worldwide symbol for peace.
The peace symbol made its first appearance in London’s Trafalgar Square in April 1958. Originally designed as the symbol for the British nuclear disarmament movement, it soon spread to America, where it was put to use by anti-war activists. Before it was a dozen years old, it could be seen on psychedelic Volkswagen bugs and buses in San Francisco’s Haight Ashbury and on the camouflaged helmets of U.S GIs in the jungles of Vietnam. In apartheid South Africa, the regime tried to forbid its use; closer to home; right wing zealots mocked it as “the footprint of an American chicken” – or a sign of the devil. But it proved far stronger than even its most strident detractors.
Though people worldwide now recognise this potent symbol, few remember its designer, Gerald Holtom, who created it by combining the semaphore signals for the letters “N” and “D” – nuclear disarmament.
But Holtom no doubt would be proud to know that his simple circle has become universal shorthand for activist idealism, wordlessly and at a glance communicating the interlinked commitments to peace, liberty, and all that is best and most hopeful in the human spirit.
The above text is an excerpt from the book below which is an excellent read:
Peace
UG xx
very interesting read. When I was at school We used to call it "Ban the bomb"
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