The Power of Buttons

“The Power of Buttons” is a pop-up workshop engaging the St. Louis community with a small but powerful public text: the pin-back button.

These wearable, shareable public texts are crucial to social movements and organizations but easily overlooked because of their small size and seemingly fun and frivolous nature. Personal stylistic flair as well as visual messages of political or social affiliation, buttons are at once texts and objects; they both document and disseminate personal beliefs and preferences.

Developed by the Center for the Humanities at Washington University in St. Louis in partnership with local arts educator CJ Mitchell, the “Power of Buttons” pop-up workshop will help participants consider the significance of buttons as a public text and persuasive tool throughout histories, social movements, civic engagement, humanistic inquiries and community building. Participants will also design, create and take home their own buttons!

All ages and generations are welcome — snacks and supplies provided.

This event is one of nine sites throughout the U.S. part of the National Humanities Center’s first-annual “Being Human” festival. The new community-focused lineup of events, taking place April 15–26, 2024, is aimed at highlighting the ways that the humanities add depth and meaning to our lives, help us understand ourselves and one another, and provide context for the complex world around us.