This button was likely used during Bowl of Rice party events in California in 1941. Between 1938 and 1941, Chinese Americans led fundraising efforts, known as Bowl of Rice parties, to raise money to aid Chinese civilians suffering in the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937-1945). Leaders organized Bowl of Rice party events in San Francisco’s and New York’s Chinatowns, along with in over two thousand communities across the country. The drives featured parades, concerts, pageants, and other activities.
To learn more about the history of Bowl of Rice parties, please see this blog post: