I collect (American) Judaic lapel buttons.
I have approximately 3000 unique items. Each one represents a different moment in the American Jewish life and offers a way to learn about the Jewish experience.
Jews have produced and distributed lapel buttons (or pins) since the beginning of the 20th century. Some of these were produced to commemorate celebrations, others to make a point at demonstrations. Some were produced for commercial gain, and others for a political campaign. Their purposes are legion and diverse. Some are humorous, some serious. Each one tells of a moment in the recent Jewish experience.
In the Spring of 1979, Present Tense magazine (published by the American Jewish Congress until the early 1990s) printed a brief description of my collection [Vol 6 #3 pp. 30-31, it was actually the cover story]. At the time, the collection numbered only a few hundred items.
Periodically I share one here.
As the “Che franchise” continues to grow, few other culture heroes (meant metaphorically) seem able to compete for public attention. Back in the late ’60s and early ’70s it was not uncommon, however, to see posters of a wide variety of cultural icons on student walls, both political leaders, entertainment figures and even intellectual giants. We even saw people wearing buttons with some of the same images on their lapels. Or maybe I simply don’t get around much any more.
One figure whose image rose high at the beginning of the century in Jewish circles became quite an icon. (From Die Bucher Der Bibel, illustrated by E. M. Lillien.)
Now, he is almost a figure of derision. (Seen spray-painted on the wall of an apartment building on Ibn Gabirol Street in Tel Aviv in March of 2009; the text reads: "We don't want, don't need…")
Nonetheless, today, the 10th of Iyyar (י אייר) on his birthday, I honor Theodor Herzl the inventor of Political Zionism.
It is hard to imagine that sometime as early as the 1920s someone would have walked the streets of America wearing this button.
| Date: | 1920s? |
| Size: | 1.3 cm |
| Pin Form: | straight |
| Print Method: | celluloid |
| Text | [none] |
Many people have lapel buttons. They may be attached to a favorite hat or jacket you no longer wear, or poked into a cork-board on your wall. If you have any laying around that you do not feel emotionally attached to, please let me know. I am preserving these for the Jewish people. At some point they will all go to an appropriate museum.
Despite Everything - Davka
A Starting Point
