Badge

This badge features the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament symbol over parts of the New Zealand flag. CND was launched in London in February 1958. The New Zealand Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament began in 1959.

 

British graphic artist Gerald Holtom designed the symbol which was originally a white circle in a black square. The cross inside the circle forms a semaphore signal for the letters N and D. The symbol caught on internationally and has been used ever since to express the desire and determination for universal peace.

 

Wearing protest

The visual culture of anti-nuclear protest often took form in practical objects such as t-shirts and badges. Badges are accessible, mass-produced objects, cheap to make and purchase, easily disseminated, and effective in conveying powerful political messages.