Advanced Search

Learn About The Holocaust

Special Collections

My Saved Research

Login

Register

Help

Skip to main content

Button pin calling for humanitarian support

Object | Accession Number: 1992.68.3

Search this record's additional resources, such as finding aids, documents, or transcripts.

No results match this search term.
Check spelling and try again.

results are loading

0 results found for “keyward

    Button pin calling for humanitarian support

    Overview

    Brief Narrative
    Pin-back button, manufactured by the Whitehead & Hoag Company (W&H) in Newark, New Jersey. The central image is based on a 1915 bronze sculpture by Jules Louis (Leon) Butensky titled “Goles” (Yiddish for diaspora) and known as “Exile” in English. Button pins were used to rally support for a variety of causes, and similar buttons were commissioned by the Central Committee for the Relief of Jews Suffering Through the War and for a Relief Ball in March 1916. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, increased antisemitism, rapid modernization, and deepening economic problems led a large proportion of the Jewish population to emigrate from Eastern Europe. By the time World War I broke out in 1914, Jewish emigres exceeded 3.5 million. Many Jews living in the Austro-Hungarian and Russian Empires in Eastern Europe were displaced due to military campaigns, and fled to other countries to escape persecution. After the war, the United States became increasingly isolationist, with the Quota Act of 1921 and Immigration Act of 1924 severely restricted the number of refugees that could enter the country. In the decade leading up to World War II, Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party’s increasing persecution and suppression of Jewish rights led more Jews to flee Germany. However, the strict quotas and the growing anti-immigrant sentiment limited the number of Jewish refugees able to immigrate to the United States. Jewish leaders employed a variety of overt and behind-the-scenes tactics to encourage the American government to take action, but the majority of citizens continued to oppose allowing refugees into the country.
    Date
    manufacture:  1916 March
    Geography
    manufacture: Newark (N.J.)
    Credit Line
    United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection
    Markings
    front, printed, dark blue ink : [Hebrew characters] / THE JEWS LOOK TO AMERICA FOR HELP [The voice of your brother's blood cries out to you. / The Jews look to America for help]

    back, printed, black ink : THE WHITEHEAD & HOAG CO. / BUTTONS / BADGES / NOVELTIES / AND SIGNS / NEWARK, N.J.
    back, within seal, printed, black ink : ALLIED PRINTING / TRADE / UNION / LABEL / COUNCIL / 3 / NEWARK, NJ
    Contributor
    Manufacturer: Whitehead & Hoag Co.

    Physical Details

    Language
    English Hebrew
    Classification
    Identifying Artifacts
    Category
    Badges
    Physical Description
    Circular, paper covered, metal pin-back button. In the center, printed in medium blue ink, is a man holding a child and carrying a sack. The figures are set inside a cream-colored ellipse, within a circular, dark blue border, and a solid blue filling the rest of the circular space. A red, white, and blue American flag is split between the left and right sides of the frame. The top of the frame has a line of Hebrew text printed in dark blue ink on a silver-colored, metallic background, and a row of beading in silver over a dark blue background. The bottom of the frame has a similar row of beading above a line of English text, printed in dark blue over the silver background. The recessed metal backing has an inset straight pin, and an off-white paper backing with the manufacturer information and a union seal printed in black.
    Dimensions
    overall: | Diameter: 0.875 inches (2.223 cm)
    Materials
    overall : metal, plastic, paper, ink

    Rights & Restrictions

    Conditions on Access
    No restrictions on access
    Conditions on Use
    No restrictions on use

    Keywords & Subjects

    Geographic Name
    Newark (N.J.) United States.

    Administrative Notes

    Provenance
    The pin was acquired by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 1992.
    Record last modified:
    2023-06-28 09:37:37
    This page:
    https:​/​/collections.ushmm.org​/search​/catalog​/irn7085

    Download & Licensing

    In-Person Research

    Contact Us