Review the cartoons and the video with newspaper clips about the Black Hand.
THERE MUST BE at least ONE detail that you can associate with directly with either your personal experience (not only about IT-AM) or with something you learned in school or from the media.
In other words: when you watch these two videos SOMETHING must resonate in you, either because it reminds you of something similar, OR because it made you UNDERSTAND something new (the ah-ha moment.)
COMMENTS MUST BE ORIGINAL. DO NOT REPEAT WHAT OTHER PEOPLE HAVE ALREADY DISCUSSED.
COMMENT: in a very short paragraph, identify the cartoon or clip and FOCUS ON THE DETAIL.
SEPARATE PARAGRAPH (space between paragraphs): why did you pick this detail? What is it that made an impression on you.
KEEP YOUR COMMENTS SHORT AND CLEAR. Nobody reads paragraphs longer than 5 lines (and I am being generous here.)
REPLY to a comment that points to a detail that you also identified.
What I identified with most from the cartoons and clips was when you stated that the Black Hand did not, in fact, exist and was perpetuated by the media and corrupt politicians to scare the masses.
ReplyDeleteWhat took me by surprise about this detail was just how closely it resembles our current political climate. With social media being so ingrained in our daily lives, news travels within seconds. We have access to any and all information at the tip of our fingers and it's frightening to see the way media was able to control and manipulate the minds of the general public 100 years ago so easily. Who knows for sure if the information we are getting from the news in our current technologically advanced world is fact due to the sheer speed in which factual and or fictional information can be easily spread and deemed as truth.
You make a lot of solid points. Its crazy to think about social media and how much "Influencers" really control their audience. If one of these Influencer figures was to post a discrimatory comic/picture, who knows what the consequences may hold.
DeleteJessica Fracasse
ReplyDeleteWith in the Cartoon Clip, I found it surprising that ITAM were seen as "ape" like, that they were not considered "white", also that Italians replaced slave workers in the south after the revolution.
I chose this detail because I never knew that about ITAM. I knew that for many Italians coming to the US was a challenge, yet I never knew the extent to the amount of push back that they received from "white" Americans. However, what is more surprising is that after all the hatred that ITAM faced, a study was done recently to find that "white" voters (that who strongly associate with their Italian or German heritage), are currently Trump supporters... Interesting.
I believe you bring up an interesting point. I too did not know Italian American's were presented as apes within racist cartoons. Unfortunately, there are so many details lost within history.
DeleteI would predict that today's generation or the generations to follow will never understand the degree of discrimination faced by their own race/culture/tribe because they did not have to face it firsthand. I do not mean to downplay anyone facing discrimination in our present generation. But rather, stating how fast the past is forgotten.
Ferjana Safa
DeleteYes I agree with everything that you just stated. The cartoons were basically portraying as apes and also I didn't realize that they were replacing slave workers in the south.
Hanna Kryvonos
DeleteFor me also, it was surprising to find out from the anti-Italian cartoons that Italians who had come to the country as “free white persons” became marked as “black” because they accepted low paid jobs and lived in terrible conditions. This fact makes me upset because people who were not Italians started to see them through the prism that they received from the cartoonists.
One clip that truly stuck out to me was the one provided from Quentin Tarantino’s “Django Unchained”. The clip provided a sense of discomfort and overall disgust, for me.
ReplyDeleteThe idea of “phrenology” and measuring bumps on the skull can tell you the mental traits of an individual is absolutely ridiculous. The clip taken from “Django Unchained”, emphasized the three distinct dimples found in an African American slaves’ skull, and states the bumps are found in the area of the skull most associated with “civility” rather than “creativity”. Basically, stating the African American slave was not smart enough or creative enough to come up with a way free himself.
Overall, I felt this scene was important to further understand how targeted individuals from different races/cultures/tribes, were (are) treated. It seems to me, that individuals justify their racist beliefs, by believing anything they’re presented with. Regardless of how ridiculous it may be.
One thing I wanted to comment on was the fact that Italians were portrayed as apes in the cartoons. Another interesting fact that I didn't acknowledge was that Italians were slaves after the revolution down south. Finally, Black Hand was also new to me as it was a secret society that hasd "a history" of criminal activity. It was a rumor that was made by politicians that were corrupt to scare the masses
ReplyDeleteOne detail that really stuck out to me in the cartoon comic was how Italian Americans were represented by rats coming from "the slums of Europe".
ReplyDeleteI choose this detail because out of all the disgusting illustrations of Italians this one was by far the worst. In my native country, Georgia, loyalty is everything and being called a rat is probably the worst thing you can call somebody. Although in the cartoon, they were not calling Italians disloyal but calling them social parasites. Its shocking to me that Italians used to get bashed by the media to this extent. I would have never thought that.
I also chose the rat imagery. I think that calling someone a rat has a negative connotation no matter which part of the world you go. I find it interesting how they use animal imagery to degrade people. It is also something that is still done done today — the phrenology justification behind it is also interesting. Finally, I was also surprised to learn about the extent of the bashing, I never learned about it in school.
DeleteHanna Kryvonos
ReplyDeleteFrom the cartoon clip I was surprised that all Italian immigrants despite their social status were treated so badly because they were considered unintelligent (loafers and drunkards), and their wish to support their families by taking such jobs as shoes cleaner was often misunderstood as a slave.
I pick this detail because I don’t accept when the mass media used to misrepresent real facts and many people perceive this information as a truth. Without analyzing the received information people started to share with each other and after that it is hard to tell them real facts. Due to such an effect Italian immigrants believed in the existence of Black hand which in reality was fiction that politicians invented and mass media supported in order to scare more successful Italian immigrants.
It's extremely saddening to see how Italians were depicted, as they had no reasoning to be treated so poorly. Good point you brought up about how to the mass media is used to misrepresent facts, which is very evident even in todays world.
DeleteAfter watching the cartoon clip and reading through some material, I still find it completely shocking how Italians were depicted, as these sort of apes, with little to no value. These cartoons back then most likely influenced the views of Italians in society similar to the way social media and celebrities do in today's world which is extremely unfair.
ReplyDeleteI think it's important to understand and learn about these events in the past so that we can learn to be better educated on discrimination and racism, so we can make the world a better, more inclusive place for everyone.
I agree, this relates to media today.
DeleteI also think these clips influence modern stereotypes of ITAMs.
Deleteyet people dont learn youre right.
DeleteFerjana Safa
ReplyDeleteIn the clip posted, the ITAM'S were shown as apes. In all the cartoons you could also see how the ITAM's were depicted and held below the normal standards they had back then. ITAM's were also kept in place in stead of the others. Also, something that stood out was the fact that the black hand didn't actually exist. It was just something the media had formulated and then after the spread of it being called that, it eventually got titled. Which resulted in politicians to also call it that.
I picked this detail because I've never thought about it that way and also it never occurred to me that the black hand could be something the media just fibbed about in order to bring more attention.
I agree, I think it is very important to realize how much the media can fool the public and use propaganda to scare society which will cause drama, and all types of chaos. It is wrong yet still used in present day with politics, sports, celebrities, etc.
DeleteI agree, I think it is very important to realize how much the media can fool the public and use propaganda to scare society which will cause drama, and all types of chaos. It is wrong yet still used in present day with politics, sports, celebrities, etc.
DeleteWhat stuck out and resonated with me the most was the cartoon of the ape shinning shoes.
ReplyDeleteIn the anthropology classes I've taken in the past we've gone over how many European tribes including Italians were not accepted and were not considered white in America. Knowing this and knowing that Italians were subjected to lynchings caused me to not be too moved by the defamatory cartoons we were shown. But as the son of two Sicilian immigrants the cartoon resonated with me because just like how Americans looked down upon Italian immigrants, Sicilians are looked down upon by other Italians. Using a shoe shinning ape to represent Italians signifies that they are inferior, uneducated, and only capable of easy tasks. This is parallel to what Italians north of Sicily think of Sicilians.
You raise an interesting point here. How can any group of people, regardless of their race, sexuality, religion, nationality, etc, hope to fight against the injustices brought on by another group if said group isn't united within themselves? I think it's appalling to see groups of people, much like the Italians that you mentioned, who create division within themselves. At the end of the day, all Italians were fighting the same enemy, but not being united with each other made it easier for the enemy to control them and how others view them.
DeleteWhen watching the clip from Django Unchained one detail that stuck out to me was when the character started making up facts to support his own racist claims. As he looks at the skull, he talks about the dimples and how they are placed based on race and how the dimples affect behavior which makes no sense.
ReplyDeleteThis scene stuck with me because of how common it is for people to create baseless claims to support their own agenda especially in todays media. This method of spreading a false narrative has always been used to discriminate against and build animosity towards groups.
The scene from Django Unchained where Leonardo DiCaprio is talking about the differences between the skulls resonated with me.
ReplyDeleteI picked this scene because it showed the delusion of someone convinced that one race is superior to the other. This delusion is seen today in terms of politics. Not being bias to one side, I feel as if people I know on both of the left and the right don't do their research and choose to believe in everything they hear from unreliable sources.
I like the inference you made about alluding toward dominant races over each other just by thinking about the difference in the skulls from Django Unchained.
DeleteOne detail that I can associate with the media is the imagery of the rats. In this cartoon, the illustrator depicted Italian-Americans as rats coming from the sewer of Europe following behind Peter Piper branded in clothing with the American flag print. On the other side there were European aristocrats from other European countries that were deemed better celebrating as they left.
ReplyDeleteI picked this detail because it reminded me of when Trump said that America always gets immigrants that come from “s***hole countries.” The depiction of Italian-Americans as rats reminded of the type of immigrants that Trump was referring to. In contrast, the European aristocrats reminded me of when he said “why don’t we get more people from places like Norway.” This made an impression on me because it tells me that there are “acceptable” immigrants and certain countries are held to a higher standard as represented by the cartoon and Trump’s statements.
i think you’re spot on with this analysis of that specific cartoon as i thought of trumps ‘s***hole countries comment when studying the comics.
DeleteI agree with the details you mentioned above. Vietnamese immigrants come to the United States expecting to live a better life. But when they came to America, they didn't have any ID or passport. They were considered as straw men, exploited by labor and treated as animals.
DeleteIn your lecture about Lombroso this statement stood out to me, "Cesare Lombroso was a world renown scientist, a psychiatrist who specialized in the care of the criminally insane. At a time when people with mental defects were locked up in "snake pits" for life, never to see the light of day again, Lombroso took it upon himself to try to understand and find a cure for mental illness." Knowing there was a time people were locked up for mental defects is a nauseating thing to even fathom. I believe the world is still and sadly will always be a "devils advocate" kinda a place in lack of words.
ReplyDeleteThe movie Django Unchained is a movie that is shown to be comical and horrific, underlying the sad and disgusting truth about racism, violence and slavery. I remember watching this scene so naive when the movie first came out not even knowing what Leonardo was talking about with the reference to the bumps on the skull. I couldn't agree more (with watching the film recently in elder years) that this is one of the most horrific films I scene to date.
I agree with your whole statement regarding Django because I didn’t have much understanding and was watching it for mainly entertainment purposes ( how well the acting is, how the scene is set up), but as I got older, i realized the truth and had a greater understanding of the hatred for black people, and it was more about why do people hate me, why do i have to feel the pain for hundreds of years. But, i find it very beneficial it was in the movie because it should be making us question the information they were spewing and has been the concrete evidence for providing help to black people
DeleteOne detail that resonated with me most was what the black hand represented in the ITAM cartoons. I was unaware that the black hand represented some form of illegal business and I find it different for a cartoon to depict illegal business with that imagery.
ReplyDeleteI picked this detail because my who life coming from an ITAM household, I was always told stories of hardships and berries my family had to come when they were trying to start off their new life here in New York. When ever I tell people where I come from and how my family got into the garbage business when they came to America I always get the look and then people insinuate my family was a part of the mafia or some illegal crime family.
After reviewing the political cartoons and watching the video, it made me realize how different Americans viewed Italians being in the mafia vs how Italians really are back in Italy. I think the Blackhand was an exaggeration of Italian-Americans based from movies and the media and how they acted in the streets. As we know, every group regardless of nationality has gangs and mafia but I believe Italians were more represented this way because of the influx of immigration. Italian mafia in Italy is way worse than in America. In Italy, they are much more violent and are broadcasted on the news when a crime is reported, but they are not shown as the "Blackhand" because whoever releases that will be found and killed by a mafia member. The mafia here is much more careful when it comes to organized crime because the punishment is worse here than in Italy.
ReplyDeleteThe basic idea of the systemic racism that you see in the videos and comics is equivalent to that of one AfricanAmerican might endure or Jewish American ect. From what i’ve seen in school over the years of political comics and new paper articles, they all boil down to one major factor: Spread your ideals (racism) as far as possible/ relate it to as many people as possible and no one will stop you.
ReplyDeletewhat resonated with me is in the video of the ‘black’ invasion on the white homesteaders and the white K.K.K are storming in to save the day...? That was really when i thought to myself ‘wow they’ve been using this manipulative tactic on adults to babies in order to get more members.’ That’s what anyone essentially uses to be an effective tyrant.
In the cartoons clips, the most impressive detail for me is the scene of ITAMS locked up in a cage and facing death. The faces of the people in the barn are shown miserable because they know that they are about to die. And the faces of the two American men are excited to be about to kill these ITAMS.
ReplyDeleteThe reason why I chose this detail is because I feel very hurt. Just by looking at the video, I feel miserable, so the victims who have been killed must suffer more than that. I felt that society at that time was too cruel when they only regarded people as animals and treated them cruelly. Just like in Vietnam during the war, the Chinese have imprisoned Vietnamese in a cage. They pour boiling water and sprinkle salt on the prisoners and let the sun burn their skin gradually. Some prisoners could not stand the harsh torture anymore, they would commit suicide.
The cartoon clip that stood out to me the most was the image of the black hand on the box with what looked like an Italian American leaving with a worker in the back with uncle sam on the top.
ReplyDeleteThe cartoon depicts the Italian being a thief. Just as it always has been there has been an inferior ethnic group in American at this point in time it was Italian Americans. Like today and example would be Mexicans not much as chnaged. They are said to be just like the Italians were lazy, corrupt, criminals, not paying theirdue as Americans do like taxes,and thiefs. Mexcians are said to take jobs away from born Americans but that isnt always the case sterotypes are depicted in these political cartoons like them being thiefs and not giving back.
what resonated with me when watching the clips, one of the clips that hit home for me was the scene from “Django: Unchained”, when Mr. Candie is discussing the make up of Ben because being a black (dark skin) woman, I will never understand how can someone look at me and say that it’s in me to be “submissive” or in other words, slave due to three dimples in Ben’s skull. It’s was frustrating to watch it because majority people really believed in scientific racism.
ReplyDeleteIt is completely unfair that Italian Americans were represented like apes and rats. Animals are given more respect than these minorities honestly. These cartoons brainwashed people back then about Italian americans the same way the media portrays Muslims now. Its absurd. Even after years of discriminating other races and realizing its wrong we still continue to do it if someone is different than us. Its very important to learn from the mistakes of the ones before us.
ReplyDelete