Moina Michael promoted the red poppy as a memorial flower in the United States after World War I.
Michael was an American professor who read John McCrae’s poem “In Flanders Fields” in 1918. Inspired by the poem’s image of poppies growing among soldiers’ graves, she began wearing and selling silk poppies to raise money for disabled veterans.
Her campaign helped connect artificial poppies with remembrance in the United States. The American Legion later adopted the poppy as its memorial flower and organized poppy distributions to support veterans and their families.
The red poppy is particularly associated with World War I remembrance and is also used around Armistice or Remembrance observances in several countries. It should not be confused with the white poppy, which is associated with peace campaigns rather than the standard American Legion fundraising tradition.