Political Cartoons & Stereotypes

American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee 1990 M Street NW, Suite 610 | Washington DC, 20036 | Tel: 202-244-2990 | Fax: 202-333-3980 | www.adc.org

Arab Americans Today

Questions for Discussion

• What is a stereotype?

• Are stereotypes bad?

• How do you picture an Arab?

Definitions & Concepts

• Stereotype: a general idea, usually negative, used to characterize a religious, ethnic, or national group • Ethnocentrism: the belief that one’s own ethnic, religious, or political group is superior to all others • Prejudice: an unfavorable opinion formed against a person or group based on a stereotype

Political Cartoon Themes

• Sheiks and harems • The enemy as grotesque • The enemy as wealthy, powerful, & corrupt • The enemy as dangerous aggressor • The enemy as death • The enemy as animal & subhuman • The enemy as rodent • The enemy as inherently violent • The enemy victimizes his own children • The enemy as destroyers of peace • The enemy as Hitler • The enemy as contemptible • “Our righteous wrath”: a celebration of power • The enemy as immigrant

Analyzing Political Cartoons

Use these questions to analyze the following cartoons: • What visual clues are there in the cartoon?

• What is the main idea or theme of the cartoon?

• What is that artist’s bias?

• What is the historical context of the image?

• What stereotype is being promoted?

Sheiks & Harems

The enemy as grotesque

“The Jew as terrorist and subversive” Russia, 1907

Bolshevism, the Killer of Germany Germany, World War II

The enemy as wealthy, powerful, & corrupt

Who is greedy?

Don Wright, Miami News, 1976

The enemy as dangerous aggressor US, World War I US, World War II

“‘Bolshevism’ on the Threshold!” Gale, Los Angeles Times 1920

US, World War II

New York Times, November 16, 1997

“What the Mideast needs is a new map…and I just happen to have one right here!…”

The enemy as death

Woburn Daily Times, January 4, 1984

©1983, Copley News Service

“Some of my best friends are terrorists ” Oakland Tribune, July 21, 1982

“The Third Reich? No!” Anti-Nazi Germany, 1930s

The enemy as animal & subhuman US as spider creeping over Spain, USSR

The fly of the Mediterranean Diario Las Americas, September 12, 1981

MacNelly, Chicago Tribune

US, World War II

The enemy as rodent Hitler as a rat. “We will defeat and destroy our enemy without mercy.” —USSR, World War II

“Jew as rat” Germany, World War II

Benson, Arizona Republic June 1982

The enemy as inherently violent Oakland Tribune, April 19, 1983

The Daily Times, Ottawa, IL October 24, 1984

Pravda, USSR

Libya (barrel) & Syria (silencer) Bill De Ore, Dallas News, August 14, 1980

“…Just what you always wanted-a homeland!” The Atlanta Constitution, July 29, 1982

The enemy victimizes his own children Vlahovic, Yugoslavia, 1985

Bob Englehard, The Hartford Current, June 18, 2002

Brookins, Richmond Times Dispatch, September 6, 1990

The enemy as destroyers of peace “Uncle Sam Crucifying Peace in Central America” Jose Luis Hernandes , Espindola, Mexico

Honolulu Advertiser

“Be it ever so humble…”

“It’s not anti-peace

—

it’s just to change its tune” Houston Chronicle, May 17, 1983

The enemy as Hitler Stalin as Hitler. Fitzpatrick St. Louis Post-Dispatch

The Miami Herald, September 4, 1982

The enemy as contemptible NacNelly, Chicago Tribune

“The long red line”

A greeting card

“Our righteous wrath”: a celebration of power

Shelton, Orange County Register

Bennett, St. Petersburg Times

Brookins, Richmond Times Dispatch, August 28, 1990

Brookins, Richmond Times Dispatch August 28, 1990

The enemy as immigrant New York Post, April 21, 1995

“Nothin’ personal, man. I just felt like coldcocking an Arab”

The mailbox is labeled “Arab-American”

“Rarely do we see ordinary Arabs — practicing law, driving taxis, singing lullabies, or healing the sick.” - Professor Jack G. Shaheen

Discussion Questions

• What feelings are evoked by these images? What attitudes do they foster?

• Do stereotypes contribute to racism?

• Why are similar themes repeated and used against different adversaries?

• Why do we created stereotypes?

• Is it legitimate to criticize an individual political leader, but not a specific religious, political, national, or ethnic group?

Arab Americans