Latin America in Caricature
“Not many readers will thank the author as he deserves, for he has told us more about ourselves than we perhaps wish to know,” predicted Latin America in Books of Latin America in Caricature—an exploration of more than one hundred years of hemispheric relations through political cartoons collected from leading U.S. periodicals from the 1860s through 1980.
The cartoons are grouped according to recurring themes in diplomacy and complementing visual imagery. Each one is accompanied by a lengthy explanation of the incident portrayed, relating the drawing to public opinion of the day. Johnson’s thoughtful introduction and the comments that precede the individual chapters provide essential background for understanding U.S. attitudes and policies toward Latin America.
. . . one of the most important books in recent years on hemisphere relations. . . . A bold work that could scarcely have been conceived until recently, Latin America in Caricature is a product of the climate of raised consciousness that has made many privileged white males aware of the hollowness of the stereotypes they have concocted to rationalize domination over blacks, women, and other purportedly less-than-rational beings—stereotypes that they then projected southward so as to justify their assumed rights of hegemony in the hemisphere.
1. Introduction
2. The Hemisphere as Monolith
3. Latin America as Female
4. The Republics as Children
5. The Republics as Blacks
6. The Latin American Nations as Non-Black Males
7. Social Reform and Militarism
8. Conclusion
Notes
Index
