Vintage Political Protests & Activists Photo Gallery

The power of protest is a timeless expression of objection, disapproval and dissent. SuperStock's Vintage Political Protests & Activists Photo Gallery captures the spirit of these historic moments in time. Our collection of images showcases the passion and commitment of those who have taken a stand against injustice and inequali...Read more

Dr. & Mrs. Martin Luther King Jr., being greeted by New York City Mayor Robert Wagner, New York City, New York, USA, Phil Stanziola, New York World-Telegram & Sun Photo Collection, 1964

African American Demonstrators outside White House, with signs "We demand the right to vote, everywhere" and Signs Protesting Police Brutality against Civil Rights Demonstrators in Selma, Alabama, Washington, D.C., USA, Warren K. Leffler, US News & World Report Magazine Collection, March 12, 1965

Gasoline dealers demonstrating with picket signs at the White House, Washington, D.C., USA, Marion S. Trikosko, US News & World Report Magazine Collection, August 1, 1979

Martin Luther King with leaders during March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, Washington, DC, USA, Warren K. Leffler, U.S. News & World Report Magazine Photograph Collection, August 28, 1963

Protesters holding Anti-Abortion Signs during U.S. President Jimmy Carter's visit to Clinton, Massachusetts, USA, Bernard Gotfryd, March 16-17, 1977

African-American Protestors removed from Steps of U.S. Capitol Building by Police during Civil Rights Protest, Washington, D.C., USA, Warren K. Leffler, US News & World Report Magazine Collection, March 15, 1965

Anti-integration Protestors outside NAACP Annual Convention, Washington, D.C, USA, Marion S. Trikosko, US News & World Report Magazine Collection, June 22, 1964

Strikers jeering at few workers who were entering a mill, Greensboro, Greene County, Georgia, USA, Jack Delano, U.S. Farm Security Administration, U.S. Office of War Information Photograph Collection, May 1941

Protesters with signs: 'Johnson unfair to labor,' 'Reinstate Donovan,' June 1934.

A nun studies the graffiti on a section of the Berlin Wall..

Young visitors to the Berlin Wall hold a candlelight vigil to celebrate the demolition of a section of the Wall at Potsdamer Platz..

Children marching in an elementary school parade circa 1964.

Netherlands protest against the death sentence for Preston Cobb in the USA circa 1960s .

The official opening of the Brandenburg Gate..

A crowd celebrates atop the Berlin Wall following the official opening of the Brandenburg Gate..

Anti-nuclear demonstrators sit outside the air base during the arrival of Ground Launch Cruise Missile equipment..

Woman Suffrage Movement - Bonfire on the sidewalk in front of the White House circa 1918 .

Woman Suffrage Movement - Bonfire on the sidewalk in front of the White House circa 1918 .

Woman Suffrage Movement - Bonfire on the sidewalk in front of the White House circa 1918 .

Woman Suffrage Movement - Bonfire on the sidewalk in front of the White House circa 1918 .

Woman Suffrage Movement - Bonfire on the sidewalk in front of the White House circa 1918 .

January 28, 1938 - Members of the American Federation of Hosiery Workers arriving today at Union Station today from they staged a parade to the White House as a protest against the boycott of Japanese silk.

Women protesting for silk hose, holding picket sign - anti-nazi sign circa 1938.

Marchers in a silk parade in Washington D.C. circa 1938.

Marchers picketing against a silk boycott circa 1938.

Representatives of the Washington branch of the American League for Peace and Democracy took up signs today and picketed the Italian Embassy circa April 8, 1939.

Anti-war protesters against World War II holding signs circa 1940 .

Anti-war protesters against World War II holding signs circa 1940 .

Striking Seamen picket Commerce Department. Washington, D.C. Jan. 18 1937.

Pickets at the Department of Commerce protesting Maritime Board decisions circa 1938.

Washington police encounter anti-war protesters and one world government protesters holding signs circa 1940 .

WNBQ-TV NBC, Channel 5 out of Chicago (1948-68) was the 'World's First All Color TV Station.' Changed to WMAQ in 1964. Camera crew at the March on Washington, 8/28/63 - Photo by Rowland Scherman/GG Vintage Images/UIG

Folk singers Peter, Paul and Mary perform at the March on Washington, 8/28/63. Left to right: Paul Stookey, Mary Travers and Peter Yarrow. (GG Vintage Images/UIG)

Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (left center, looking right) and others at March on Washington, 8/28/63. (GG Vintage Images/UIG)

Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and others link arms at March on Washington, 8/28/63. (GG Vintage Images/UIG)

Unknown girl with banner at the March on Washington, 8/28/1963

Actor Charleton Heston, writer James Baldwin, actor Marlon Brando and singer Harry Belafonte at March on Washington, 8/28/63. Rowland Scherman/GG Vintage Images/UIG

During the March on Washington 8/28/63

Two people at the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom read the headlines about the crowds attending the event. (GG Vintage Images/UIG)

August 28, 1963 - Civil rights demonstrators hold placards at the March on Washington, D.C. (Warren K. Leffler/USIA/GG Vintage Images/UIG)

August 28, 1963 - Marchers, signs, and tent at the March on Washington, 1963. (Marion S. Trikosko/US News & World Report Collection/GG Vintage Images/UIG)

8/28/63 Marching from Washington Monument to LIncoln Memorial. ((GG Vintage Images/UIG)

Demonstrators marching in the street holding signs during the March on Washington. August 28, 1963. (Marion S. Trikosko/US News & World Report Photograph Collection/GG Vintage Images/UIG)

Anti Vietnam War Demonstration, Fifth Avenue, New York City, New York, USA, Bernard Gotfryd, April 1969

Anti Vietnam War Demonstration, Fifth Avenue, New York City, New York, USA, Bernard Gotfryd, April 1969

Anti-War Protesters with Signs, New York City, New York, USA, Bernard Gotfryd, 1969

Anti-War Protester with Signs, New York City, New York, USA, Bernard Gotfryd, 1969

American Musician, Joan Baez performing at Anti-draft demonstration, Central Park Band shell, New York City, New York, USA, Bernard Gotfryd, 1968

Shia mourners being detained for defying restrictions during a muharram procession in Srinagar, India. (Photo by: Basit Zargar/Majority World/UIG)

Shia mourners being detained for defying restrictions during a muharram procession in Srinagar, India. (Photo by: Basit Zargar/Majority World/UIG)

Opposition leader Manik Sarkar speaking during a protest organised by CPI (M). Agartala, Tripura, India. (Photo by: Abhisek Saha/Majority World/UIG)

Protesters with Signs at March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, Washington, D.C., USA, photo by Marion S. Trikosko, August 28, 1963

Crowd at March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, Washington Monument in Background, Washington, D.C., USA, photo by Warren K. Leffler, August 28, 1963

Civil Rights Parade near City Hall, Republican National Convention, San Francisco, California, USA, Warren K. Leffler, July 12, 1964

Protesters with Signs at March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, Washington, D.C., USA, photo by Marion S. Trikosko, August 28, 1963

Protesters with Signs at March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, Washington, D.C., USA, photo by Marion S. Trikosko, August 28, 1963

Crowd with Signs at March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, Washington Monument in Background, Washington, D.C., USA, photo by Warren K. Leffler, August 28, 1963

Employees of Coca-Cola Plant on Strike, Sikeston, Missouri, USA, John Vachon for Farm Security Administration, May 1940

Marchers carrying banner "We March with Selma!" on street in Harlem, New York City, New York, USA, Stanley Wolfson, World Telegram & Sun, March 1965

Participants in Selma to Montgomery Civil Rights March resting on Wall, Alabama, USA, Peter Pettus, March 1965

Women's March for Equal Rights from Farrugut Square to Lafayette Park, Washington, D.C., USA, Warren K. Leffler, August 26, 1970

Anti-War Protesters I.R.S. Building, Washington, D.C., USA, Warren K. Leffler, April 28, 1971

Anti-War Protesters near Department of Justice Building, Washington, D.C., USA, Warren K. Leffler, April 30, 1971

Anti-War Protesters, 14th St. March to Justice Department, Washington, D.C., USA, Warren K. Leffler, May 4, 1971

Anti-War Protesters, 14th St. March to Justice Department, Washington, D.C., USA, Warren K. Leffler, May 4, 1971

Martin Luther King, Jr., half-length portrait, facing left, speaking at microphones, during anti-war demonstration, New York City, New York, USA, Don Rice for World Journal Tribune, 1967

Parade of unemployed men, carrying signs, New York City, May 1909. One sign asks, 'There Are Thousands Walking the Streets at Night without Shelter. What is the Municiple Lodging House For' An African American man's sign reads, 'Fall in Line. Make Way for Brotherhood. Establish Justice.' (BSLOC_2018_1_139)

English suffragettes demonstrating in London in 1907 or 1912. One protest sign reads, 'MEETING' to demand the enfranchisement of Women and to protest against the exclusion of women from a share in law-making (BSLOC_2018_2_52)

Dressed in fringed buckskin suit, 'Marshal' Carl Browne leads the Coxey Army in 1894. With Coxey, he planned the march to Capitol Hill to present their Good Roads Bill, a $500 million Federal job plan. He was eccentric, believing himself to be the reincarnation of Jesus Christ (BSLOC_2018_2_100)

Rear View of African-American Woman wearing a "I Have a Dream" Jacket Walking through Mud in Shantytown known as "Resurrection City", Washington, D.C., USA, photographer Thomas J. O'Halloran, Marion S. Trikosko, May 24, 1968

Women Marching on Washington in Support of Equal Rights Amendment, Washington, D.C., USA, photographer Thomas J. O'Halloran, Warren K. Leffler, August 26, 1977

Group of Union Postal Workers Picketing outside White House, Washington, D.C., USA, photograph by Thomas J. O'Halloran, December 1969

Suffragists Protest U.S. President Woodrow Wilson's Opposition to Woman Suffrage, Chicago, Illinois, USA, Photograph by Burke & Atwell, October 1916

"Right to Life" Demonstration, Washington, D.C., USA, photograph by Thomas J. O'Halloran, January 23, 1978

Jesse Jackson speaking into a microphone, surrounded by marchers carrying signs advocating support for the Hawkins-Humphrey Bill for full employment, Washington, D.C., USA, photograph by Thomas J. O'Halloran, January 1975

Vietnam War Protesters in front of White House, Washington, D.C., USA, photograph by Thomas J. O'Halloran, August 1965

Supporters of U.S. President Richard Nixon during "Call America Back to God" Rally, photograph by Thomas J. O'Halloran, July 1974

Group of People Gathered on Steps of U.S. Capitol during Anti-CBW Protest, Washington, D.C., USA, photographer Thomas J. O'Halloran, Marion S. Trikosko, August 1969

African American and white supporters of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party holding signs in front of the convention hall at the 1964 Democratic National Convention, Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA, photograph by Warren K. Leffler, August 25, 1964

Vietnam War Protestors sitting on Steps of U.S. Capitol, Washington, D.C., USA, photographer Thomas J. O'Halloran, Marion S. Trikosko, May 5, 1971

Demonstrators marching in Street holding Signs during March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, Washington, D.C., USA, photograph by Marion S. Trikosko, August 28, 1963

Marchers arriving at Union Station for the March on Washington, Washington, D.C., USA, photograph by Marion S. Trikosko, August 28, 1963

The Sharpeville massacre occurred on 21 March 1960, at the police station in the South African township of Sharpeville in Transvaal (today part of Gauteng). After a day of demonstrations against the Pass laws, a crowd of about 5,000 to 7,000 black protesters went to the police station. The South African police opened fire on the crowd, killing 69 people.

Reagan la roba a los pobres Migrant farm worker at a demonstration, Washington, D.C. Published 1981. Photograph shows an elderly man in the Solidarity Day march, holding a picket sign with the message: Pres. Reagan robas a los pobres para darle a los ricos, LCLAA, in a crowd at a protest. A sign in the background has the message: Pres. Reagan, do not snuff out the dreams of Hispanics!

Civil Rights March, Washington DC. USA, Warren K. Leffler, August 28, 1963

Rosa Parks Speaking at Rally Near Washington Monument Held as Part of Poor People's Campaign, Washington DC, USA, Warren K. Leffler, June 19, 1968

Elisabeth Freeman (center holding American flag) with Suffrage News Girls, Bains News Service, May 1913

Pickets outside Textile Mill, Greensboro, Georgia, USA, Jack Delano, Farm Security Administration, May 1941

Pickets outside Textile Mill, Greensboro, Georgia, USA, Jack Delano, Farm Security Administration, May 1941

Employees of Coca-Cola Plant on Strike, Sikeston, Missouri, USA, John Vachon for Farm Security Administration, May 1940

Woman Picketing Creamette Mfg. Co., Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA, John Vachon for U.S. Resettlement Administration, September 1939

Martin Luther King Jr., Accompanied by Dr. Ralph Bunche and Reverend Ralph Abernathy, Meeting with Teacher Union Leaders at Start of Memphis March, Memphis, Tennessee, USA, March 21, 1965

Crowd of Mourners, some Carrying Flags, Marching down 7th Avenue near 112th Street on way to Attend Memorial Service for Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in Central Park, New York City, New York, USA, April 7, 1968

Protesters of the general strike in Trieste, Italy, February 14, 1902, Italy, from L'illustrazione Italiana, Year XXIX, No 8, February 23, 1902.

Departure of Russian deputies after the protest sitting on July 22, 1906, Vyborg station, Russia, photograph, from L'Illustrazione Italiana, Year XXXIII, No 33, August 19, 1906.

Soldiers blocking the streets at the demonstrators exit from the rally in the Arena, General strike in Milan, Italy, Red week, from L'Illustrazione Italiana, Year XLI, No 24, June 14, 1914.

Three Women Picketing in Memory of Irish Dead, Protest of U.S. Loans to England, Washington DC, USA, Harris & Ewing, 1923

Anarchist Meeting, Union Square, New York City, New York, USA, Bain News Service, May 1, 1914

Group of Women from Women Strike for Peace Holding Signs relating to Cuban Missile Crisis and Peace, New York City, New York, USA, 1962

Mrs. Swing, Woman Suffragist, Picketing White House, Washington DC, USA, Harris & Ewing, 1917