Life, 1920-07-01 · page 22 of 56
Life — July 1, 1920 — page 22: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page from *Life* magazine contains three pieces of social satire: **The main poem "Americanization"** mocks hypocritical assimilation attitudes. It depicts Americans calling immigrants (using period slurs: "dago," "hunkie," "wop") inferior while simultaneously blaming *them* for not assimilating. The satire exposes the contradiction: Americans deliberately disparage immigrants through prejudice and mockery, then lament their failure to "Americanize." The poem argues that prejudice—not the immigrants themselves—is the real barrier. **The cartoon** (top left) shows a stereotypically dressed immigrant being confronted aggressively by a native American, visualizing this contemptuous treatment. **"The Effect"** describes how immigrant men (named to suggest Italian, Spanish, and Eastern European origins) frequented ethnic community spaces before the war, but now gather at the American Legion—suggesting forced assimilation through wartime patriotic pressure rather than genuine integration. Together, these pieces critique nativist attitudes disguised as progressive "Americanization" efforts.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Americanization ALL him a dago, a hunkie, a wop; 7 Treat him as someone inane and inferior; Turn up your nose at his house and his shop, on Show yourself thus his decided superior. he Sneer at his gestures and laugh at his speech; Always applaud when your funny man guys him, de Then when you've widened and deepened the ch breach, m: Weep that you cannot Americanize him! ye Has he a houseful of children? Oh, my! What an example of gross impropriety! th Doesn't he know some Americans cry ur Out on a menace like this to society? bo How can we hope to enlighten his mind? pi What can we do if the prudent despise him? ra Where for such families a home can we find? How can we hope to Americanize him? bu te What of his background and what of his race? What of his culture inherent or national? “y Questions like this enter into the case; ab Relevant they to a matter so rational. ly. Let us get down to the rock-bottom fact— sp Oft ‘tis our prejudice only that tries him; co Treat him with knowledge and justice and tact— ar That is the way to Americanize him. Denis A, McCarthy. Definition POOR listener is a man who insists on telling th you what his new car can do and what his old we car could do and what his next year’s car is going aa to do, when you want to tell him what your golf loc game was last year and what it is this year and what you are going to develop it into by next year. The Effect : s - : 2 world needs reformers more than ever now, because there is always the B FORE the war: of some former reformer to be undone. Biff Smith spent his evenings at Mahoney's Kelly pool parlors; Rafael Lugari could be lo- cated any time after seven rp. M. at Tony Mar- coni’s place around the corner; Oscar Schmitz was sure to be found at Krieger’s bowling hall; Pedro Cortez had a comfortable chair in the Espafiola family hotel; Frangois Montmartre “WELL, IF THAT'S ALL YE'VE GOT, I S'POSE 1 GOT TO BE SATISFIED, BUT 1 DUNNO HOW YE EXPECT ME TO PAY EXPENSES AT THIS RATE” was usually in the gallery of the Théatre Fran- caise, while Wladek Pulaski could be paged wherever the Society for Polish Liberation was meeting on that particular evening. Since the war: You can find the whole gang up in the Ameri- can Legion Hall. As Usual ONES: The price of sugar has gone up five cents on the pound. Smitu: Why? “Maybe some person down at Washington Y 5 suggested there might possibly be a shortage oi baci st bal io - L sugar.” CAN HE ABOLISH THE MIDDLEMAN? comicbooksxeom