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Creator:
Blaine MacDonald
Publication:
Reprinted in Best Editorial Cartoons of the Year 1972
Publication Date:
1971
Description:
United States involvement in the Vietnam Conflict (1964 - 1973) was one of the most controversial events in American history. Many people disagreed with the motives and rationale for the war, and with the institution of the draft, people resented the heavy death toll the war had on young men sent to combat. Additionally, by 1968, the war appeared to have stagnated into a quagmire and victory was not guaranteed. Protesters often gathered outside of the White House, chanting and demonstrating. In this cartoon, President Richard Nixon and his Vice President Spiro Agnew observe a group of demonstrators and Agnew suggests that threatening the protesters with work would be an effective way to scare them off. This suggestion plays upon the stereotype of anti-war protesters as hippie, job-less drop-outs with no goals or education. Protesters actually came from all levels of society and all manner of backgrounds, but they were easily dismissed by mainstream society for their alliances with fringe groups and people.
Source:
The Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum at Ohio State University (Blaine courtesy of the Hamilton Spectator)