Alfred Mccoy’s PhiliPPine cArtoons:

Political Caricature of the American Era

(1900-1941)

 IMPORTANCE OF THE DOCUMENTS

1. It provides an important record of the American era. They reflect the values, conflicts
and important issues in the society.
2. It encourages us the process of opinion formation and decision making as well as
provide entertaining perspective on the news.
3. It represents the feelings of the people way to discuss political and social issues using
arts.
4. The future generations will be able to have a glimpse of the past Philippine society
through these cartoons.

 BACKGROUND OF THE AUTHOR

Alfred “Al” W. McCoy
 Born on June 8, 1945 in Concord, Massachusetts, United States
 Dr. Alfred “Al” W. McCoy, who is Professor of SE Asian History at the University of
Wisconsin at Madison where he also serves as director of the Center for SE Asian
Studies. He’s spent the past quarter-century writing about the politics and history of
the optimum trade.
 McCoy has spent the thirty years writing about Southeast Asian history and politics.
His publications include Philippine Cartoons (1985), Anarchy of Families (1994), Closer
Than Brothers: Manhood at the Philippine Military Academy (2000) and Lives at the
Margin (2001).
 After earning a Ph.D. in Southeast Asian history at Yale, the writings of McCoy on this
region has focused on two topics; Philippine Political History and Global Opium
Trafficking. The Philippines remains the major focus of his research. His teaching
interests include; Modern Philippine social and political history, U.S. foreign policy;
Colonial empires in Southeast Asia; illicit drug trafficking; and CIA covert operations.
 CONTEXT OF THE DOCUMENTS
POLITICAL CARTOONS OR CARICATURE
are a rather recent art form, which veered away from classical art by
exaggerating human features and poking fun at its subjects. Such art genre and
technique became a part of the print media as a form of social and political
commentary, which usually targets persons of power and authority. Cartoons
became an effective tool of publicizing opinions through heavy use of symbolism,
which is different from a verbose written editorial and opinion pieces. The unique
way that a caricature represents opinion and captures the audience’s imagination
is reason enough for historians to examine these political cartoons. Commentaries
in mass media inevitably shape public opinions and such kind of opinion s is
worthy of historical examination.
Philippine Cartoons: Political Caricature of the American Era (1900-
1941)
Philippine political cartoons gained full expression during the American era. Filipino
artists recorded national attitudes toward the coming of the Americans as well as the changing
more and times. While the 377 cartoons compiled in this book speak for themselves, historian
Alfred McCoy’s extensive research in Philippine and American archives provides a
comprehensive background not only to the cartoon but to the turbulent period as well. In his
book, Philippine Cartoons: Political Caricature of the American Era (1900-1941), Alfred McCoy,
together with Alfredo Roces, compiled political cartoons published in newspaper dailies and
periodicals in the aforementioned time period. For this part, we are going to look at selected
cartoons and explain the context of each one.

ACHIEVEMENTS
 PHILIPPINE CARTOONS (198 5)
 Philippine Catholic Mass Media Award
 Best book of the year for 1985
 Philippine National Book Award for History,
1986 Gintong Aklat Award (Manila)
 Special Citation for History (1987)
 

The first example shown was published in The Independent on

May 20, 1916. The cartoon shows a politician from Tondo, named
Dr. Santos, passing his crown to his brother-in-law, Dr. Barcelona. A
Filipino guy (mas depicted wearing salakot and barong tagalog)
was trying to stop Santos, telling the latter to stop giving Barcelona
the crown because it is not his to begin with.

The second cartoon was also published by The Independent on

June 16,1917. This drawn by Fernando Amorsolo and was aimed as a
Commentary to the workings of Manila Police at the period. Here, we see a
Filipino child who stole a skinny chicken because he had nothing to eat.
The police officer was relentlessly pursuing the said child. A man wearing a
salakot, labeled Juan dela Cruz was grabbing the officer, telling him to leave
the small-time pickpockets and thieves and turn at the great thieves instead.
He was pointing to huge warehouses containing bulks of rice, milk, and
grocery products.
 This third cartoon was a commentary on the unprecedented
cases of colorum automobiles in the city streets. The Philippine
Free Press published this commentary when fatal accidents
involving colorum vehicles and taxis occurred too often already.

This fourth cartoon depicts a cinema. A blown-up police

officer was at the screen saying that couples are not allowed to
neck and make love in the theater. Two youngsters looked
horrified while an older couple seemed amused.
 The next cartoon was published by The Independent on November
27,1915. Here, we see the caricature of Uncle Sam riding a chariot pulled
by Filipinos wearing school uniforms. The Filipino boys were carrying
American objects like baseball bats, whiskey, and boxing gloves. McCoy, in
his caption to the said cartoons, says that this cartoon was based on an
event in 1907 when William Howard Taft was brought to the Manila pier
riding a chariot pulled by students Liceo de Manila. Such was condemned
by the nationalist at that time.

The last cartoons was published by Lipang Kalabaw on August

24,1907. In the picture, We can see Uncle Sam rationing porridge
to the politicians and members of the Progresista Party
(sometimes known as Federalista Party) while members of the
Nacionalista Party look on and waiting for their turn. This cartoon
depicts the patronage of the United States being coveted by
politicians from either of the party.
 CONTRIBUTION AND RELEVANCE OF THE DOCUMENT
 Serves as a mirror of the society’s colonial condition.
 Positive and negative changes were mirrored in the cartoons.
 Conveys scandals, struggles, and social changes of the American Colonial Period.
 Discovery of Filipino’s creativity in journalism and cartoons.
 How they used it as an act of protest or weapon in the struggle for social reform &
independence.
 Shows an array of information and graphic images which mainly focuses on the political
aspect.
 Filipino politician did not understand the essence of democracy and the accompanying
democratic institution and processes.
 Patronage became influential and powerful.
 Transition from a Catholic-centered, Spanish-Filipino society to an imperial America-
assimilated one.
 “Sexual revolution” mindset.
 Condition of the poor Filipinos in the Philippines.