The Wasp — 1889 — page 96: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This 1889 *Wasp* cartoon satirizes efforts to repeal the **Chinese Exclusion Act** of 1882. The illustration shows four well-dressed white men gathered around a Chinese immigrant (depicted with exaggerated racist caricature), who holds a document labeled "CHINESE EXCLUSION ACT." One figure holds wheat, another gestures dismissively—the "easy work" of the title appears sarcastically to mock the notion that repeal could happen smoothly. The cartoon's tone suggests the cartoonist views repeal advocates as foolish or naive, treating the exclusion of Chinese workers as a settled matter. This reflects the fierce anti-Chinese sentiment prevalent in late 19th-century California, where *Wasp* was published.