This text is part of the Teaching Hard History Text Library and aligns with Key Concepts 5 and 6.
Source
This text is in the public domain. Retrieved from https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47db-bbee-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99.
Text Dependent Questions
- QuestionAccording to the poster, who was responsible for giving the watchmen and police officers the power to act as kidnappers?AnswerThe power was given to watchmen and police offers by the mayor and the alderman.
- QuestionWhat words does Parker use to describe both African Americans and policemen?AnswerAfrican Americans were "colored people," "fugitives" and "slaves," and policemen were "watchmen," "kidnappers," "slave catchers," "hounds."
- QuestionAnalyze the language used in the poster. Why do you think he chooses the language that he does? What purpose does this language serve?AnswerParker makes use of words like “cautioned” and “shun” and phrases like “respectfully cautioned and advised” to establish a sense of danger in the presence of African Americans.
- QuestionConsider the current state of relations between the black community and the law enforcement community. What parallels can you draw between this poster and our current reality? (Consider such things as the Black Lives Matter movement, police racial profiling and violence, police shootings, etc.)AnswerAnswers will vary and may include negative media depictions of African Americans, distrust of police from communities of color and acquittal of crimes in cases of police shooting African-American men.
Reveal Answers