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 Civil War, "Bloody Shirt," and Black Americans

 


 “Only Waiting for the Signal”
  Cartoonist:  Thure de Thulstrup
  Source:  Harper's Weekly
  Date:   October 30, 1880, p. 693

Click to see a large version of this cartoon...

Click to see a large version of this cartoon

Complete HarpWeek Explanation:
The "bloody shirt" waved in this cartoon takes the form of a huge battle-standard being raised by a long-haired, former Confederate soldier, representing Southern Democrats. On it, the Democratic ticket of Winfield Hancock and William English corresponds to the Confederate "Lost Cause Revised." Around the latter slogan coils a Copperhead snake, symbolizing Peace Democrats and Confederate sympathizers in the North during the Civil War. The Democratic campaign of 1880 is the equivalent of a Confederate military campaign (note the Confederate flag carried by the troops on the right) against the nation's capital (the Capitol building stands in the upper-left background). In order to win this political war, the Southern Democrat stamps out the "Negro Vote."
 

 

 

 
 

 

     
 

 

 
     
 

 

 
     
 

 

 

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