“Arms are for hugging” (anti-nuke, gun control slogan)
“Arms are for hugging” is an anti-nuke and anti-gun (“arms”) slogan that has been printed on many images. The anti-nuke version appears to be from 1976, and the anti-gun version from 2000.
“Sign on car: ‘Use American arms for hugging’” was printed in the Fond du Lac (WI) Reporter on November 20, 1976. “Bumper sticker spotted on Kam Highway: ‘Use American Arms for HUGGING’” was printed in the Honolulu (HI) Advertiser on February 28, 1977. “‘Arms Are for Hugging’ and ‘You Can’t Hug Your Friend With Nuclear Arms’ bumper stickers are particularly popular” was printed in the New York (NY) Times on June 25, 1982.
“The participants held placards that read: ‘Arms Are For Hugging,’ ‘Guns—No, Life—Yes,’ ‘Enough is Enough,’ and ‘A Million Moms Can’t Be Wrong’” was printed in USA Today (McLean, VA) on May 15, 2000, about the Million Mom March for gun control on May 14, 2000.
20 November 1976, Fond du Lac (WI) Reporter, “The Beacon” by William A. Draves, pg. 1, col. 1:
...sign on car: “Use American arms for hugging.”
28 February 1977, Honolulu (HI) Advertiser, George Daacon column, pg. A-3, col. 1:
Bumper sticker spotted on Kam Highway: “Use American Arms for HUGGING.”
1 December 1981, Cincinnati (OH) Enquirer, Frank Weikel column, pg. C-1, col. 2:
THE ATTENTION given the “arms race” between the United States and Russia might have “inspired” a bumper sticker observed in Williamwsburg, Ohio. It read:
‘Use American arms…for hugging.”
25 June 1982, New York (NY) Times, “...and Now a Disarmament Industry” by Judith Miller, pg. A14, col. 6:
“Arms Are for Hugging” and “You Can’t Hug Your Friend With Nuclear Arms” bumper stickers are particularly popular, and what Mr. Colt termed the “old standby” buttons are still selling well.
18 December 1983, Philadelphia (PA) Inquirer, “On the bus, anti-nuclear activists get time to sing, reflect, plan” by Suzanne Falow, pg. 3-N, col. 4:
While Mr. Culp walked up and down the aisles of the bus, people got a chance to read a bumper sticker that he put on the back of his vest. “Arms Are For Hugging,” it read.
20 December 1984, Philadelphia (PA) Daily News, “I Wanted My Life to Mean More…” by Julia Lawlor, pg. 6:
Another bag is filled with Milky Way bars, and a helper carries a large metal urn full of coffee to Richette’s car - a cream-colored 1978 Cadillac Seville with a broken tail light and a bumper sticker that reads: ARMS ARE FOR HUGGING.
12 October 1985, Boston (MA) Globe, “Sticker mania” by Diane White, pg. 24, col. 1:
Hitherto little-known fact: Your chances of being run off the road by someone with an “Arms Are For Hugging” sticker on his or her car are roughly 20 times greater than your chances of being bullied by someone whose bumper reads, “I Swerve To Hit Small Furry Animals.”
2 November 1986, New York (NY) Times, “The Old-Fashioned Bumper Sticker Is Still Holding Up Its End” by Tom Lashnits, Westchester sec., pg. 38, col. 2:
Instead, people voice concern about the even more imposing issue of nuclear weapons. A few samples seen on the road recently:
“One Nuclear Bomb Can Ruin Your Whole Day.”
“Arms Are for Hugging.”
4 September 1989,
I agree with the motorist I saw recently whose car bore a bumper sticker that read: “Arms Are for Hugging.”
14 May 2000, Chicago (IL) Tribune, “Moms march firmly into gun debate road to D.C. rally is a personal, political journey” by Bonnie Mille Rubin, pg. 1:
On Saturday, as the women gathered in a Wilmette parking lot before dawn, the mood was somber and purposeful. They took turns signing a banner with slogans reminiscent of the anti-war and civil rights movements of the 1960s: “Arms are for hugging” and “Love and Peace.”
15 May 2000, USA Today (McLean, VA), “Marchers tell Congress: Mind your mothers Thousands of parents rally for gun control” by Wendy Koch, pg. 3A:
The participants held placards that read: “Arms Are For Hugging,” “Guns—No, Life—Yes,” “Enough is Enough,” and “A Million Moms Can’t Be Wrong.”
Twitter
Joey Godley
@J0EMYG0D
@sirenuh32 Arms are for hugging, guns are for shooting. I say no more.
12:38 AM - 13 Jul 2009
Twitter
Josh van Eikeren
@joshve
Heading to the Black Horse wearing a gun shirt entitled “Arms are for Hugging.” This should be interesting…live Twitterfest will ensue…
12:08 AM - 7 Mar 2010
Twitter
TheDannyRussell
@TheDannyRussell
Most NRA members & Republicans are actually in favor of more gun safety.
Background checks. Waiting periods, etc.
If our politicians are unable to make us safer then vote them out.
Disarming is not a sign of being a wimp.
Arms are for hugging 🤗
4:07 PM - 8 May 2019