Lapel pin worn by Robert Kennedy campaign staff during the Democratic primaries, 1968. Enameled metal. No maker mark. Official "K" logo.
With President Johnson's surprise withdrawal on March 31, it became a three-way race between Senator Robert Kennedy of New York, the insurgent Eugene McCarthy of Minnesota, and the establishment choice, Vice President Hubert Humphrey. Having managed his brother's campaign in 1960, Kennedy and his team hit the ground running, rapidly building a national organization in the spring of 1968, leading up to the all-important California primary on June 4.
The sophistication of the Kennedy operation can be seen in the high quality of the distinctive lapel pin issued to staff. Simple but stylish, much like the candidate himself, it featured a white letter K outlined in silver, enclosed in blue and red enamel. Shipments were just reaching local headquarters in late May, and many hadn't yet been distributed when Kennedy's death, victim of assassination like his brother, abruptly ended the campaign.
We acquired some of the remaining staff pins, saved by a foresighted Kennedy worker and preserved for posterity. Perhaps no other item is more symbolic of the hope and tragedy of that spring, and no collection of RFK memorabilia is complete without one.
