Torches of Freedom Unisex Tee v1

The "Torches of Freedom" campaign was one of the most brazen propaganda operations in American corporate history. In 1929, American Tobacco Company hired Edward Bernays — the "father of public relations" and nephew of Sigmund Freud — to break the taboo of women smoking in public. Rather than advertise directly, he reframed cigarettes as symbols of feminist liberation, orchestrating debutantes to march through New York's Easter parade with cigarettes in hand, planting the story with journalists as a spontaneous act of defiance. It worked — female smoking rates surged, and a cultural taboo was erased not through genuine social change, but through manufactured perception.

This was no outlier. Propaganda has been wielded against the American public by corporations and government alike for centuries. Woodrow Wilson's Committee on Public Information flooded the country with pro-war messaging during WWI, suppressing dissent and demonizing enemies. The CIA's Cold War-era Operation Mockingbird funded journalists and cultural institutions to steer public opinion. Corporate industries from tobacco to pharmaceuticals have bought scientists, bankrolled think tanks, and shaped media narratives to protect their profits. The manipulation of public belief is as American as apple pie — and the citizens have always been the target audience.

**All items are print-on-demand and refunds will ONLY be issued for factory misprints.

***Style Tip: Size up for a relaxed alternative / thrift vibe - or create your own crop tee by cutting at your desired length. This comfortable jersey fabric won't fray when cut! See images for sizing chart.