Members of the Inaugural Committee wore this beribboned pin as they organized official occasions marking the inauguration of President Lyndon B. Johnson and Vice President Hubert Humphrey on January 20, 1965. Suspended from the metal bar pin, over which an eagle presides, are two ribbons. A short loop of blue satin holds a golden medallion embossed with national symbols, including another eagle. Underneath unfurls a longer, red-white-and-blue ribbon with inaugural dates and names printed on its stripes in gold lettering. The pin belonged to longtime Washington, DC resident and political reporter, Ethel L. Payne (1911-1991). At the time, the civil rights activist worked for Democratic National Committee. The summer before, President Johnson honored Payne’s activism by presenting her with a coveted ceremonial pen he used to sign the Civil Rights Act of 1964. He would again recognize her contributions to fulfilling African Americans’ voting rights with a ceremonial pen that he used to sign the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Both pens are in the Anacostia Community Museum’s collection. Over the course of her pioneering journalism career, Payne filed stories from thirty countries, becoming known as the First Lady of the Black Press. (See also Accession Numbers 1991.0076.0104 and 1991.0076.0105.)
Cite As:
Ethel Lois Payne Collection, Anacostia Community Museum, Smithsonian Institution, Gift of Avis R. Johnson.
