Life — February 21, 1907 — page 18: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This satirical illustration depicts how different ethnic groups or nationalities perceive America's founding father (likely George Washington, referenced as "Father of Our Country"). Each caricatured portrait is labeled with an ethnicity: Chinese, Negro, Irish, Italian, Spanish, Boer, Indian, Alsatian, Hawaiian, and Russian Jew. The satire suggests that immigrants and people of different backgrounds literally "see" the same American founding figure differently—their visual perception shaped by their own cultural identity. This reflects early 20th-century American attitudes about ethnic diversity and assimilation, implying that different groups have distinct, even conflicting interpretations of American identity and values. The caricatures employ period-typical stereotypes that would be considered offensive today.