political cartoon in Harper’s Weekly in 1874
Thomas Nast published a political cartoon in Harper’s Weekly in 1874 that sent a strong message on the current state of the United States at that time. The cartoon shows a male and female African Americans framed in a shield with two holding a skull on top of the shield-like figure. One of the men was in clothing similar to the Ku Klax Klan labeled KK while the other man was wearing a suit labeled white league. The cartoon had various descriptions that sent a strong message to the viewers. In the background, there is also a man hanging from a tree, suggesting that he might have been lynched. On top of the picture were the words ‘The Union as it was’ that are written in capital letters. On top of the skull held by the two men were words, ‘The Lost Cause,’ also written in capital letters. Above the African Americans were the words ‘Worse than Slavery,’ which were also written in capital letters. Although there are no emotions that can be drawn from the man wearing the Ku Klax Klan and White League clothing, African Americans can be seen as being stressed, unhappy, and troubled.
The Reconstruction implemented by Congress lasted from 1866 to 1877. The Reconstruction was aimed at recognizing the Southern States, providing a means for readmitting these states into the Union, and defining how the Whites and Blacks could live together in a non-slave society. However, most of the Southern States saw the Reconstruction as humiliating and vengeful and did not welcome it openly. This is the message that the political cartoon by Nast was trying to send to the viewers. After the Civil War, organizations such as the Ku Klux Klan and the White League resisted the Reconstruction and terrorized African Americans in the South. Though slavery was abolished during the era, African Americans still struggled with various issues such as discrimination, intimidation, and violence, which are portrayed in the political cartoon by Nast.