1. The AmericAn imperiAl
AlphAbeT
Political Art and Education in the American Empire
by Jacob W. Petterchak
Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey
Abstract
American imperial policies and their justifications have been a source of contention among historians for some time. With
explanations ranging from “empire for empire’s sake” to the desire to “not be left out,” a sizable body of political artwork and
politically-inspired popular art that reflects diverse popular conceptions of the American Empire has been underutilized. Given the fact
that America’s rise as an imperial player occurred and flourished in the age of mass media, large collections of political cartoons exist
to reflect the opinions of contemporary Americans from the onset of the Spanish-American War. Through the ages, much of this
artwork has presented America as a benevolent force of civilization bringing democracy and humanity to the fringes of the world. A
major component of America’s humanitarian or Imperial mission in keeping with its role as a liberator was that of educator.
If the Proof is in the Pudding, Don’t Eat It
The Expansion of US Imperial power in with the Spanish-American War was certainly no war for the schoolhouse. It was the result of a series of humanitarian cries
for humanity and the demands of the press for sensational coverage. The lives of reconcentrados and their suffering was even less a motivation for war. Even
economic motives deserve little credit for the Imperial Adventure. But all of these things came together after the battles had been won, and created a reason to remain
in Cuba, Puerto Rico and the Philippines. The need to be able to exploit the resources and geography of other nations was a concept in and of itself somewhat
repulsive to the average American, but it was a beneficial one. The need to justify a long occupation of three culturally unique places became necessary. As the
McKinley-Roosevelt Campaign Poster RIGHT shows in the bottom right and left corners, the humanitarian results of the war are as clear as the economic benefits.
But the prevalence of the role of education and that of the schoolhouse bring to mind the question of why the schoolhouse? The answer lies in the frequent use of
children in these political cartoons, appealing to the feelings of a country sympathetic to children, who have always been granted the opportunity to improve their
lives through the peaceful institution of the little red brick school. (This image is claimed by the Ohio Historical Society.)
Resources
The Rutgers Library Annex and the NYPL were excellent resources. Puck, Judge, Leslie’s Weekly, Harper’s Weekly,
The Minneapolis Tribune, Life and National Geographic are all periodicals which I frequently used in this project,
A Common Education in a Diverse Nation
By the time of the Spanish-American War, the United State was by any measure a very diverse nation. But one thing that bound almost all
native-born Americans together, whether they were Irish, English, German, Italian, Chinese or Black, was a common education system
that was superior to every other nation except for maybe Scotland. The American public school was originally designed to homogenize the
nation’s children, especially immigrant children, to form civic-minded “Americans” with basic skills. As the 19th
Century came to a close,
the great Imperial struggle of the European Powers reached fever-pitch, and came to the United States. The US had a long-standing
tradition of swallowing and assimilating (in some way shape or form, even if nominally) non-American peoples like the Native Americans,
Mexicans and Tejanos with their land, so when Americans reached the limit of “Manifest Destiny,” they embraced Imperialism. The
Spanish-American War was by any measure extremely popular, even if this popularity was entirely due to Joseph Pulitzer, William
Randolph Hearst and other captains of the free press, whose power was made possible by America being the world’s most literate nation
and its largest economy. Right: The cartoon at right is a fine example of how the country viewed its new Imperial role. Notice
how the Puerto Rican caricature is reading “The ABC’s of American Liberty.” Common opinion at the time pretty much
preached the superiority of the English language. (Author: Zim, Judge, July 2, 1898, vol 35 no 872)
Left: This cartoon of Uncle
Sam standing tall while
European Imperial Powers
grope for pieces to an
Imperial puzzle is probably
a veiled allusion to the
moral high ground that
Americans supposedly
claimed over their
draconian and warlike
European cousins.
Strangely, Alaska is
lumped in with the
Philippines, Cuba and
Puerto Rico, probably as
an attempt to “puff-up” the
size of the “American
Empire,” even though such
colonial possessions were
dwarfed in comparison to
even Prussia’s small
imperial holdings in
Namibia and Tanzania, the
Philippines were of great
importance to the American
shipping industry in need of
safe and financially viable
shipping channels to
China. (No Signed Artist,
Judge, June 20, 1903
volume 44, No. 1131)
Above: This illustration, from a post-Spanish-American War and post-1900 election issue of Judge
Magazine, shows Uncle Same driving his little car of progress to China, a country of “400 million
barbarians.” Uncle Sam’s car has lots of goodies in it for the Chinese people, who will, from the opinion
of artist Victor Gillam, will benefit from the (then) new “Open Door Policy.” For the careful observer,
take a close look at who or what is riding shotgun! ( Victor Gillam, Judge, December 9, 1900 Volume 39,
Number 999)
Top Left: “The Massedonian Seal” aka the Seal of the
Colony of Massachusetts. The “helpless native” says
“Please come over here and help us.” (The Making of
New England, Samuel Drake, Charles Scribner and
Sons, New York, 1898)
Top Right: A cartoon from The Minneapolis Tribune
depicts a racialized Filipino being lured to “civilization”
with the promise of, among other things, Education.
(Cartoons of the Spanish-American War By Charles
Lewis Bartholomew, Journal Printing Co, Minneapolis,
1899)
Bottom Left: A person bearing some resemblance to
Kipling or Theodore Roosevelt carries a native to an
American school. (The Journal, Detroit, 1902)
Below: As one would come to expect, a sizable amount of pride went into the rationale for
expansion. As this cartoon presumably emphasized in 1898, the US supplanted the UK as the
world’s pre-eminent power after picking off the skeletal remnants of a decrepit Spanish Empire.
(Excess pride?) But if you read the sign that troubled John Bull is reading, you become aware of
the fact that besides the incredible natural resources and new navy that US enjoys, the Anglo-
Saxon blood and English language are just as important to its new role as the free public schools
and high literacy rates. (Grant Hamilton, Judge, June 18, 1898, Vol. 34 No. 870)
Right: The three photos below are
from a National Geographic article
called The Non-Christian Peoples
of the Philippine Islands: With an
Account of What Has Been Done
for Them Under American Rule,”
which was written by Dean C.
Worchester, former Secretary of
the Interior for the Philippines. As
National Geographic is a fine
example of “advocacy journalism,”
one can see the sexual message
behind this newly-built school for
girls in the Philippines. Thanks to
the American Occupation, boys are
no longer in school with girls,
possibly doing naughty things!
Left: Imagine that this is a
scene from the Manila
production of the Meredith
Wilson play “The Music
Man.” This scene of Filipino
schoolboys learning to play
in the school band looks like
they are about to break out
singing “Iowa Stubborn.”
This picture is supposed to
show how the people of the
Philippines are able to
mimic the American model.
Right: As one would expect
from National Geographic, what
activity could warm the heart of
even William Jennings Bryant
or Eugene Debs? A picture of
young Filipino boys playing the
national pastime at school:
baseball. (Dean C. Worchester
(Secretary of the Interior for the
Philippine Islands), “The Non-
Christian Peoples of the
Philippine Islands: With an
Account of What Has Been
Done for Them Under American
Rule,” National Geographic,
Nov 13, 1913 Vol 24, No 11)
Right: Although this
photograph has nothing
to do with school in any
way, shape or form, this
is a prime example of the
way the “yellow” press
handled the PR for it. As
such, this cover of the
popular Leslie’s Weekly
shows the cowardly
Spanish murderers
fighting in trenches
behind barbed wire.
Publications like Puck,
Life and Judge gave the
masses political
entertainment and due to
the volume of illustrations,
were even purchased by
illiterate people passed
over by the fine US public
schools. (J.C. Hemment,
Leslie’s Weekly, August
11, 1898 Vol. 87, No.
2239)
Above: This cartoon, entitled Miss Columbia’s Schoolhouse, from a pre-Spanish-American War issue
of Judge depicting the Annexation of Hawaii as if it were “the new kid at school,” being welcomed by
the gentle, civilizing teacher, Miss Columbia. In keeping with the long-standing nature of American
society (even by 1894) as a “melting pot” of peoples and cultures, the school yard is a hodgepodge of
people, few or none of which seem to be Native WASPS. The violent nature of the schoolyard is clearly
a stereotype of Irish, Chinese, Mexican and Eastern and Central European exiles. Even as such, this
cartoon certainly draws a connection to a multi-ethnic American Empire that encompasses Native
Americans before the Spanish-American War began. (Grant Hamilton, Judge, 1894)
The Promise of a Better Life to the Victims
Above: The American Capitalists, Manufacturers and Free Labor stand waiting
to bring the great luxuries of industrialization and American Life to the people of
Cuba. If you look carefully in the pile of goods Labor and Management sit upon,
you can see electricity, railroads and in the far right, the schoolhouse. The
lumping of the schoolhouse in with all these technological improvements shows
the high opinion of the institution in terms of its interchangeability with modern
life. By no means was the promise of education to Cuban and Filipino people a
reason for the Spanish-American War, but it became a reason for remaining in
Cuba and the Philippines after the sensationalized war over the (possibly)
accidental explosion of the Maine. The mission of promoting capitalist
development and spreading liberty, education and opportunity became the raison
d'être for American global expansion. (Victor Gillam, Judge, October 1, 1898, Vol
35 No 885)
A Broad Sense of Humanitarianism
Below: As is made clear in this Judge cartoon, a very Anglo-Saxon sense of duty to
your “colonial children” was present in both American and British motivations for late
19th
century Imperialism. As this cartoon illustrates, John Bull (a symbol for the people
of the UK) walks hand in hand with Uncle Sam giving Education, Science, Civilization
and Literature to their newly adopted colonial children, who are symbolically “beneath
them.” They also lead the way for the railroad and for the schoolhouse. This conveys
the message that liberty and education go hand in hand with key aspects of Western
life. The notion for the need to justify the economic exploitation of native peoples has
its origins with John Stuart Mill who believed it to be the moral requirement of a
classical liberal to militantly support the self-determination of people, only insofar as
they are able to care for themselves. (Victor Gillam, Judge, November 26, 1898, Vol 35
No 893)
A Foreign Opinion
Above, Right: This cartoon from the popular German equivalent of Puck,
Life and Judge, Kladderadatsch shows “Uncle Sam the Philanthropist”
raising a banner “In the name of Humanity,” hiding the secret motivation
for the desires of American sugar speculators. It should be noted that
America’s acquisition of the Philippines after the Spanish-American War
made the US and Imperial Prussia new neighbors: Germany held portions
of the Samoan Islands. The long history of Imperial abuses by all
Europeans was a hot topic among humanists and liberal thinkers of the
time. A natural way to impugn upon the reputation of a rival and improve
the standing of your own is to say: “See, they’re doing the exact same
thing!” Any strictly humanitarian reasons for Colonialism were likely just
exercises in laying the groundwork for feel-good history. (Roy Douglas,
Great Nations Still Enchained, Routledge, London, 1993 )