The White Skinned Slaves of Northern Propaganda

White Slave Propaganda. This was the term given to propaganda promoted by abolitionist groups in the north during and before the civil war. White slave propaganda consisted of anything from novels and articles to photography depicting mixed race, white looking, slaves. The images often showed children, with their black parents. These images were especially effective, because they would shock the viewing audience, reminding them that slaves shared their humanity The photos were attempting to strike a chord with the predominantly white viewing audience. The children were typically depicted in a sweet way, with faces that could easily pass as white, with silky hair, pale skin and rosy cheeks, attempting to appeal to an audience that might not be so open to darker skin and curlier hair. They would be wearing clothes that were similar to a northern middle class child. This campaign was based on the fact that the abolitionists did not believe that their audiences would be nearly as concerned about children who did not look like them. These posters also allude to the horrific sexual abuse that would occur on plantation. Given the laws regarding parentage in regard slavery, all enslaved children adopted the status of their mothers. Light skinned slaves wouldn’t have an easier life than their mothers, most being sold as concubines or being forced to wait on their white half-siblings, who looked no whiter than them. This was used to cause fear among northern families for their own daughters, and also raise questions about southern men selling their own children into slave markets. The props used in the propaganda were typically very patriotic, American flags and books were typical, and would help to strike close to home with the northerns and encourage them to donate to the abolitionist cause. Some of this money would go to supporting freed slaves in terms of access to education. Another purpose of the propaganda was to support the idea that the Civil War was independent from class status and about race and slavery. This was much needed after the draft riots in New York, and the general sentiment in the North and South that this was a rich man's war fought by the poor. These posters were a non-threatening way to emphasize that the war was racially charged and to calm the class tensions that existed in the North.


Sources:
https://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/01/30/the-young-white-faces-of-slavery/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_slave_propaganda
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/01440399808575226?journalCode=fsla20