Signifying Peace

Imagine you are participating in a peace march. What sorts of images would people carry with them on banners or picket signs to signify the intent of their actions? There are two images in particular that are recognized as symbols of peace and are likely to be spotted at any peace march: the dove and the symbol of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND).

Each of these symbols has a unique history and the fact that each is understood across a variety of world cultures seems to demonstrate the human desire to work for peace.

Dove

The dove has stood for positive spiritual and environmental change for many ages. Remember the biblical story of Noah and the flood in Genesis? In this story, the dove flies back to Noah carrying an olive branch. Noah and his companions consider this proof that the floodwater--symbol of disaster and destruction--is diminishing. This signifies something good. Peace is on the way.

The first popular association of the image of a dove with peace occurred in 1949. It was at this time that Pablo Picasso rendered a dove as the central image of the lithograph he was asked to design for the International Peace Congress in Paris. He interpreted Noah's dove as white--a hue that signifies purity. This also reflects the biblical assertion that God sent the floodwaters to cleanse the world of evil.

Additionally, the story of Noah and the Flood is also the origin of the olive branch as a symbol of peace. Noah sent the dove out for news of safety, regeneration, and survival and God sent the dove back with the olive leaf as a sign of hope.

CND

The nuclear disarmament symbol is the most currently designated sign of peace. It is the symbol with the vertical line with two short lines holding it up from the sides. This Gerald Holton, a conscientious objector during the Second World War, created the symbol of peace in 1958.

To create this symbol Holton combined the military semaphore signals for the letters N and D, the first initials of "nuclear" and "disarmament." Semaphore signaling is a form of communication by waving hand-held red and yellow flags in a particular pattern. Each letter corresponds with a unique flag position. Holtom overlaid the outlines of the positions for N and D and placed them within a circular border.

Holtom's designs were solicited and reviewed by the Direct Action Committee Against Nuclear War (DAC), a group that contributed to the establishment of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament. The DAC liked Holton's art and decided to use it on the first major anti-nuclear march. The protestors walked from London to Aldermaston, where British nuclear weapons were and still are manufactured, hoisting five hundred picket sticks bearing cardboard circles with Holton's image. This image, which quickly was picked up by numerous anti-war organizations, debuted on Easter weekend.

Bayyard Rustin brought the symbol to the United States in the late 1950s. In the 1960s Rustin worked closely with Martin Luther King, Jr. and others in the Civil Rights Movement. After introducing the image during civil rights marches, the symbol spread around the United States like wildfire. Eventually it ended up as the main display of protest against the Vietnam War.

These two symbols can be seen across the globe and are recognized by nearly everyone. Those who build peace ought to be inspired by these two images not only because of their interesting history. For Peacebuilders these symbols signify a global community is alive and active in bringing about a better world wherein we each realize that we are connected one to another.

Catholic Connection:

In the end, peace is...about people. Certain [symbols] and mechanisms of peace...have been derived from the accumulated wisdom and experience of innumerable gestures of peace made by men and women throughout history who have kept hope and have not given in to discouragement. Gestures of peace spring from the lives of people who foster peace first of all in their own hearts. They are the work of the heart and of reason in those who are peacemakers (cf. Mt 5:9). Gestures of peace create a tradition and a culture of peace.
--Pope John Paul II

Reflection Questions

What sorts of connections do you have with particular symbols of peace?

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