Until the 20th century, patches for clothes were usually worn to mend fabric or to signify status within an organization like the military. More recently, they have become a symbol of self-expression. They adorned the jean jackets of flower-wielding protestors in the 1960s, the fingerless leather gloves of 1980s rebels, and the backpacks of music lovers hitting shuffle on their mp3 players in the 2000s. Today, patches are a stylish way for anyone to display their likes, beliefs, style, and personality.