Freedom of Speech: A Recent History of Political T-Shirts in the United States

Abstract

Since their invention in the 1930s, t-shirts have become one of the most common styles of casual clothing in the United States—worn by all ages, genders, and social classes. Although ‘graphic’ t-shirts have existed for decades, twenty-first century technologies have made them much faster and easier to produce. Students protesting the Vietnam War in the 1960s and 70s wore black armbands and grew their hair long; today, students (and activists of all ages) are more likely to wear political t-shirts. In a time when anyone with modest computer skills can design a graphic and get t-shirts professionally printed and shipped in just two or three days, this medium for self- and group-expression is well-suited to the turbulence of politics. This article explores the recent history of political t-shirts in the United States in two parts. The first focuses on legislation and legal rulings, including a case heard by the US Supreme Court in 2018 regarding whether activists can wear political t-shirts in polling places (a space where any kind of campaign activity is generally forbidden). The second part explores the definition of a ‘political’ t-shirt. This section is grounded in a study of t-shirts that are currently turning up in thrift shops in Bloomington, Indiana—a small, politically-active community in a conservative state that voted for Obama in 2008 and then Trump in 2016.