I see and hear the peace sign used everywhere in many contexts. My 6 year old niece LOVES having the peace sign on her clothes, backpack, accessories...everywhere. I have used the word, "Peace!" as a salutation, giving light to the use in everyday hip hop culture (note: I am not very hip hop, but just fell into using it for fun). That context isn't necessarily used as a plight to end conflict. In fact, maybe it is. Personally, I like thinking of all the peace signs as a reminder that inner peace and tranquility should be a personal priority in each of our lives. Perhaps if that was a goal for us, then we wouldn't be so focused on perpetrating conflict and malice.
I was listening to NPR today and they were chatting about dinner party conversation topics. A suggestion was the inception for the peace sign, which is why I am writing about it now. The symbol is something I have taken for granted since I first noticed what the peace sign was in 1987-ish.
I'll never forget when my big sister brought home a peace sign necklace which had a huge peace sign dangling off of it. Our mom, a devout Christian, heard that the peace sign was an anti-Christian symbol, and wasn't too happy about the situation. It appears there is some validity to the similarity of the design itself and an inverted crucifix used to hang Christian martyrs upside down. The actual "Peace" context used since the late 1950's was part of the campaign for nuclear disarmament and based from the naval code of semaphore - the code letters for N and D (nuclear disarmament).It's important to challenge our pre-conceived notions. You never know how time will change our opinions. Often, a tiny piece of seemingly insignificant information will inform a whole new perspective.
