Life, 1917-01-11 · page 8 of 38
Life — January 11, 1917 — page 8: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains a formal "Form of Protest" condemning Germany's deportation of Belgian civilians during World War I. The text argues this constitutes enslavement and a crime against humanity, calling on Americans to oppose such coercion. The accompanying illustration depicts a domestic scene with a woman and child. The caption below shows a conversation between characters named Butler, Hokus, and Pokus discussing a new cook and motor-car—mundane household matters presented in stark contrast to the serious protest above. This juxtaposition appears designed to highlight the disconnect between comfortable American civilian life and the suffering of Belgian civilians under German occupation, making a moral argument that Americans cannot ignore such atrocities simply by focusing on everyday concerns.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Form of Protest By the American People Against the German Enslavement of Belgium HEREAS, The Imperial German Government has caused to be de- ported from conquered Belgium thou- sands of male civilians who, after be- ing torn from their homes and from the presence of those they love, are carried into exile and condemned to involuntary labor in the service of their enemies, and Wuereas, This deportation of the Belgian civilian population, for what- ever reason conceived or undertaken, comprises in effect, the enslavement of one nation by another, and is there- fore a heinous repudiation of the rules of civilized warfare, and Wuereas, The people of these Uni- ted States, as individuals and as a whole, are opposed in tradition, in pol- icy and in conscience to any form of slavery howsoever existing upon the face of the earth, and Whereas, The people of these United States, by reason of their free- dom from the heat of conflict, do find themselves possessed of a weapon of moral judgment more searching than the sword, and do feel it their solemn duty to wield this weapon in the in- terest of humanity, therefore be it Resotven, That the undersigned American citizens, or persons subscrib- ing to the ideals of American citizen- ship, without wishing to embarrass the National Administration, but also with- out regard for the nuances of diplo- matic conversation, do protest to the Imperial German Government, in the name of the holy brotherhood of man, against the coercion, exile and virtual enslavement of the Belgian nation, and be it furthermore Resotvep, That in the opinion of the citizens of the United States, an opin- ion ever disposed to a friendly consid- eration of the German people, the said enslavement of Belgium constitutes one of the blackest and most indefensible crimes ever perpetrated in the history of mankind. T shall remain for Belgium to write the epitaph for the defunct Prus- sian monarchy. ZL Y CY John (who has been told to come and receive punishment): just ONE MINUTE, MOTHER. “© LORD, YOU'VE OFTEN PROMISED TO HELP US WHEN WE NEEDED IT, NOW'S YOUR CHANCE.” UTLER: Madam, the new cook I OKUS: Did you make any new has come and she wants to know resolutions this year? where she will keep her motor. Pokus: No; just the same old ones.