Bataan Day poster, 9 April 1959 (English poster distributed in Manila)
A commemoration poster for 9 April 1959. The words BATAAN DAY are filled with photographs of wreath-laying, parades, flag-draped coffins and the Filipino and American unknown soldiers' tombs, beside the Philippine and U.S. flags. Text says Filipino and American soldiers 'heroically fought side by side' for freedom and democracy. The tell is glittering generalities ('life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness') and transfer from the wartime dead to a present partnership.
Propaganda techniques used in this poster
- Date
- April 14, 1959
- Period
- Cold War
- Made by
- Defenders of Bataan and Corregidor; U.S. Information Agency, Propaganda Posters Distributed in Asia, Latin America and the Middle East series
- Region
- North America
- Country
- United States
- Medium
- Poster
- Issuer type
- State
- Regime
- Eisenhower Administration
- Leader
- Dwight D. Eisenhower
- Audience
- Foreign public
- Purpose
- Commemorate
- Theme
- War and the military
- Event
- Cold War
- Source
- Unidentified Source blurred: contractors, cutouts, buried disclosure
- Source
- U.S. National Archives (NARA), RG 306, Propaganda Posters Distributed in Asia, Latin America and the Middle East, retrieved October 4, 2026
- Rights
- Public domain (U.S. government work; NARA RG 306)
U.S. Information Agency / Department of State, 1959. National Archives, Record Group 306 (NAID 6948935, 306-PPB-85).
Text on the object
BATAAN DAY APRIL 9 1959 1942 Seventeen years ago today, Filipino and American soldiers in Bataan heroically fought side by side to preserve the common ideals of freedom and democracy. The memory of their glorious deeds should serve to rekindle in our hearts the significance of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. DEFENDERS BATAAN CORREGIDOR [printer's mark:] 9-8698 [within photographs:] UNKNOWN SOLDIER; FILIPINO UNKNOWN SOLDIER; AMERICAN UNKNOWN SOLDIER
Printer's mark at lower left is small and read as '9-8698'.
