Crying Indian

You’ve probably heard the phrase, “Don’t be a litterbug.”  Keep America Beautiful first used it in 1953, the same year that Virginia adopted the slogan when the Virginia Anti-Litterbug Council was formed. The purpose of the Council was to address the increasing problem of public litter that came along with the growing popularity of manufactured disposable products.  The all-volunteer Anti-Litter Council went on to become an incorporated 501©(3) nonprofit called Keep Virginia Beautiful, which is what we are today.

In addition to our efforts, other notable organizations have promoted the anti-littering message.  In 1961 Walt Disney produced a color cartoon piece called, “The Litterbug” featuring Donald Duck.  Texas introduced their catchy slogan, “Don’t mess with Texas” in 1987, and it’s still in use today.  The U.S. Forest service introduced Woodsy Owl with his popular saying, “Give a hoot, don’t pollute.”  You can download the sheet music to his catchy song here:  Help Woodsy Spread the Word Song sheet.

But Keep America Beautiful has done so much to start and keep the conversation going!  An early commercial featured the slogan, “People start pollution.  People can stop it.”  They were also the first to distribute the litter bags for your car that were designed with a hole at the top of a small, reusable plastic bag to hang it on your vent button or radio dial (when the cars had vent buttons and radio dials).  But their most popular and notable ad was the 1971 “Crying Indian” promotion.  If you missed it or want to see it again, you can find it on YouTube.

Staying with the theme that people start pollution and people can stop it, we ARE able to make a difference.  Do you think you have the strength, time, and effort it takes to pick up 152 pieces of litter?  If you do, you can make a difference today!  According to Keep America Beautiful’s most recent Litter Study there are more than 50 Billion pieces of litter on the ground. That’s how they arrived at the 152 pieces of litter for every American.

You can do your part by joining Keep America Beautiful’s #152PickUpChallenge.  You can join in the efforts with others across Virginia and the nation by taking pictures of your cleanup and using the tag @KeepAmericaBeautiful and the hashtag #152PickUpChallenge on social media.

You can also register here to make an even bigger impact by committing to pick up 250 pieces of litter to help create cleaner, greener communities! Every piece you collect brings us closer to Keep America Beautiful’s goal of removing 25 billion pieces of litter by America’s 250th birthday on July 4, 2026.

Everyone should still be mindful of the message of “Don’t be a litterbug” because the problem of litter is still with us.  But together with your help we can tackle it!  We hope you’ll sign up for our monthly eNews; take the pledge to end littering and receive a packet of wildflower seeds, a KVB sticker, or a pocket cigarette ashtray; and follow us on social media to stay informed!