The greatest American Cleanup is not only about picking up trash. We want to inspire individuals and communities to work together toward a more beautiful and more sustainable future – Keep America Beautiful (1953-2026)

The fisherman came in with his catch. He said the day was pretty but there was more wind than he needed. Then on the boat ramp he noticed a Styrofoam cup thrown out at the ramp. There were Styrofoam pieces floating in the water and around the ramp. Just a few feet away were two nice garbage cans. He gathered the garbage.  It’s hard to understand why folks throw out their garbage, he said. The conversation took a turn when we started thinking about the olden days when stores gave out small garbage bags to hang from your car’s radio button. T.V. showed ads for “Keep America Beautiful.” In the 4th grade we did a school play about Susie Spotless from an ad. At the end of every ad Susie Spotless sang “Please don’t be a litter bug ‘cause very litter bit hurts.”

In 1965 Lady Bird Johnson partnered with Keep America Beautiful to promote highway beautification. On Earth Day, 1971 KAB launched the “Crying Indian” public service. “Iron Eyes Cody” featured a Native American man paddling down a junk-infested river, surrounded by smog, pollution, and trash; as he hauls his canoe onto the plastic-infested shore, a bag of rubbish is tossed from a car window, exploding at his feet. The camera then pans to the Indian’s cheerless face just a single tear rolls down his cheek. Iron Eyes Cody peacefully passed away in 1999, he left behind “Make me ready to stand before you with clean and straight eyes, when life fades, as the fading sunset, may our spirits stand before you without shame.”

The ad which sought to combat pollution was widely successful. According to the most recent litter study there are more than 50 billion pieces of litter on the ground. That’s 152 pieces of litter for every American. The Good news in the past ten years, littering along US roadways are down 54%. In the last year alone, over 64,000 clean-up events were held in the US resulting in over 146, 600 acres of parks, public lands, waterways, trails, and playgrounds cleaned by volunteers. 

How we take care of our unwanted trash, rubbish, waste, debris, junk or discarded items can make a big difference in the lives we live. Kitchen leftovers and scraps are often tossed to the land and lake critters once called the “slop bucket”. Unwanted usable items are donated. Reuseable boxes, cardboard, paper, plastics and cans are recycled. “Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without.”

Shannon Bardwell is a writer living quietly in the Prairie. Email reaches her at [email protected].