Brief Historical Context of “Expansion, Before and After”

During the onset of the Philippine-American War (1899-1902), Americans and Filipinos waged
violent encounters and fought each other for the control of the Philippine Archipelago. Meanwhile back
in continental America, a growing Anti-Imperialist League opposes American involvement and the
eventual U.S. occupation of the Philippines (Encyclopedia Britannica, 1998). To counter this growing
opposition, the U.S. President McKinley’s administration explored the use of wartime propaganda to
justify the war by portraying its policies as beneficial for Americans and Filipinos alike (Brewer, 2013).
Among various propaganda materials disseminated to the American public, is the humorous caricature
by The Boston Sunday Morning with the caption “Expansion, Before and After” published on March 5,
1899 – a mere month after Aguinaldo’s declaration of war against the United States (Scalar, 2020).
Exaggerated Displays of Tribal “Inferiority”

Despite the fact that this caricature is intended mostly for comedic purposes, depictions such as
these, negatively impacted the perspective of the American public towards ethnic Filipinos at the time.
With the intention of justifying American expansion in the Philippines, a before and after comparison
was used to portray the war on a positive narrative. This led to the intentional depiction of Filipinos as
societally inferior, having been equipped with war clubs, practicing “primitive” means of transport,
dressed in feathers and leaves while wildly running amok that are commonly associated with savagery
and barbarism (Okamura, 2009).

Obviously, the illustration is far from the state of Filipino ethnic cultures at the time. Under
Spanish influence, applications of technology granted tribal communities access to better metal tools
and more sophisticated instruments such as guns and navigation equipment with specific functionalities
compared to primitive wooden clubs (Pearson, 1969). With regards to clothing, even Spanish
descriptions of tribal communities portrayed ethnic Filipinos in diverse attires that are more
sophisticated than wearing mere feathers and leaves, with many even adopting predominantly
European styles of clothing (Coo, 2015). Lastly, is the caricature’s implication that ethnic Filipinos are so
behind in the game of civilizations. So much so that they require Western assistance in order to become
cultured in clothing, sports, traditions, and transport, establishing Western/American culture as the
standard for civility.

Although comparing Spanish objective descriptions to this American satirical depiction may
seem unfair, this comparison shows how far removed from reality the average American public at the
time when portraying ethnic Filipinos, having been surrounded by multiple condescending propaganda
such as this caricature.

Misrepresented Depiction of Common Filipino Physical Features

 Observing the physical features of the subjects in the caricature labeled as Filipinos with pitch
black skin, wide noses, curly hair, short and stout stature, might be similar to both Spanish and American
descriptions of the Negrillos/Negritos or Aetas of the Philippines. However, this illustration alienates
other characteristics when compared to most Filipinos with Malay/Polynesian features. In Barrow’s The
Bureau of Non-Christian Tribes for the Philippine Islands (1901), the Malay characteristics with
yellowish-brown color, straight hair, broad nose, and smooth faced were identified as the dominant
feature present in the Archipelago along with the tribes of Mindanao having some distinguishably white
or Caucasian physical features.

In this caricature however, they seem to represent Filipinos with more African/African-American
features to display inferiority when compared amongst the predominantly white American public. This
can also be further supported by the caricature's use of the pointed, oval-shaped Nguni shield in the
bottom right corner which is traditionally a Sub-Saharan African shield and not Malayan. It is important
to note that African-Americans in the U.S. at the time are still facing brutal discriminations with 191
Black Americans being lynched from the beginning of 1899 up to the end of year 1900 (Bennet, 1982).
This discriminatory situation of the American society towards Black Americans may have contributed to
attributing their common African features to condescendingly portray tribal races such as ethnic
Filipinos that are deemed inferior, barbaric, and uncivilized.  
 In spite of these inaccuracies, it is also important for us to understand that this caricature was
published right at the beginning of the American colonization of the Philippines. During that time, little
anthropological studies were conducted in the Philippines that were available for American public
consumption. For such reason, accurately portraying ethnic Filipinos might be difficult with the lack of
available references, especially for a caricature that is not meant for education but rather for comedy.

References:

Brewer, S. A. (2013, October 1). Selling Empire: American Propaganda and War in the Philippines. The

Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus.

https://apjjf.org/2013/11/40/Susan-A.-Brewer/4002/article.html

Coo, S. M. R. (2015, March 6). Clothing and the colonial culture of appearances in nineteenth century

Spanish Philippines (1820–1896). Archives.

https://tel.archives-ouvertes.fr/tel-01126974/document

Encyclopedia Britannica. (1998, June 20). Philippine-American War | Facts, History, & Significance.

https://www.britannica.com/event/Philippine-American-War

Okamura, J. Y. (2008, July 1). From running amok to eating dogs: a century of misrepresenting Filipino

Americans in Hawai‘i. Taylor & Francis.

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/01419870903055993

Pearson, M. N. (1969, April). The Spanish “Impact” on the Philippines, 1565–1770. Jstor.

https://www.jstor.org/stable/3596057?read-now=1&refreqid=excelsior

%3A461a64da0fa033cc3de9a5e92c980d72&seq=5

Scalar. (2020, October 29). Expansion, Before And After [1899]. LET ME GET THERE.

https://scalar.usc.edu/works/let-me-get-there/media/boston-globe-1899