{"id":2516,"date":"2025-04-28T21:41:21","date_gmt":"2025-04-29T01:41:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.shu.edu\/americanhistory\/?post_type=project&p=2516"},"modified":"2025-04-28T21:44:07","modified_gmt":"2025-04-29T01:44:07","slug":"a-rich-mans-battle-but-a-poor-mans-war","status":"publish","type":"project","link":"https:\/\/blogs.shu.edu\/americanhistory\/project\/a-rich-mans-battle-but-a-poor-mans-war\/","title":{"rendered":"A Rich Man’s Battle But A Poor Man’s War"},"content":{"rendered":"

Political Cartoon: How to Escape the Draft<\/em><\/strong><\/h1>\n

https:\/\/gettysburg.contentdm.oclc.org\/digital\/collection\/p4016coll2\/id\/16\/<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

The political cartoon How to Escape the Draft<\/em> was created in the midst of one of the most volatile moments of the Civil War, the 1863 New York City Draft Riots. The cartoon appeared in \u00a0Harper\u2019s Weekly<\/em>, a widely circulated publication known for its sharp visual commentary on current events. The cartoon captures the deep racial and class conflicts that exploded in response to the Union\u2019s conscription policy, exposing how many white Northerners lashed out violently against Black Americans rather than the system itself.<\/p>\n

To properly understand the cartoon, it is vital to be aware of the 1863 Enrollment Act. The law gave the federal government the power to draft men into military service, but it also meant a drafted man could pay $300 to avoid service by hiring a substitute. This policy enraged working-class white men, immigrants, or those who couldn\u2019t afford such a fee. At the same time, the war\u2019s evolving purpose toward emancipation caused resentment among whites who feared they would now have to compete with newly freed Black workers. As historian James W. Geary explains, \u201cThe commutation provision became the focal point of class-based criticism, especially from those who believed the war was becoming \u2018a rich man’s war and a poor man’s fight.\u2019\u201d\u00b9 That fear, combined with economic frustration and longstanding racism, helped trigger the Draft Riots. Joanna Cohen stated, \u201cAfrican Americans who were the target of lynch mobs, had been severe. Riots erupted on July 13, 1863, and the violence persisted for five days. Published death tolls stood at 119, although eyewitnesses, such as Jeff Whitman, Walt Whitman’s brother, reckoned that the number of rioters who had paid for their actions with their lives was closer to four hundred.\u201d\u00b2 In the center of the cartoon, an African American man cowers while several white men attack him with sticks and clubs. The irony in the caption, \u201cHow to Escape the Draft,\u201d is bitter and intentional. It mocks the idea of honor or patriotism by showing how some white Northerners responded to the draft. Instead of resisting government injustice, they directed their anger toward innocent Black civilians. According to Jonathan Well, the 1863 Draft riots were \u201cmore about lashing out at Black people than opposition to the draft, though to be sure the mob was prompted also by conscription and the fact that wealthy men could pay their ways out of service.\u201d\u00b3 The cartoon became very disturbing, showing that racial violence was still alive despite the country’s past victories.<\/p>\n

All through the cartoon, there is chaos. The attackers are mid-swing with faces twisted in anger, creating an overwhelming sense of mob frenzy. While The African American man\u2019s body language is the opposite, he is defensive, outnumbered, and vulnerable, highlighting his complete lack of protection in a society that claims to fight for liberty. In the background, objects are flying in the air. This adds to the chaos, echoing the real-life burning and looting that marked the riots. Since there are many attackers and one victim, it represents the cowardice and imbalance of power from the attackers. This cartoon isn\u2019t just a snapshot of one ugly episode. It\u2019s a commentary on the contradictions of the war itself. While the Union fought to end slavery, systemic racism was still deeply embedded in Northern society. The drawing proves that the Civil War era wasn\u2019t just a clash between the North and South, it was a national reckoning with white supremacy.<\/p>\n

How to Escape the Draft<\/em> forces us to confront the uncomfortable truth that the fight for Black freedom wasn\u2019t confined to battlefields. Their freedom was fought and resisted in city streets, in newspapers, and in the minds of everyday Americans<\/p>\n

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Footnotes:<\/strong><\/p>\n

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  1. James W. Geary, \u201cThe Enrollment Act and the 37th Congress,\u201d The Historian<\/em> 46, no. 4 (1984): 582, http:\/\/www.jstor.org\/stable\/24445478<\/a>.<\/li>\n
  2. Joanna Cohen, \u201cReckoning with the Riots: Property, Belongings, and the Challenge to Value in Civil War America,\u201d Journal of American History<\/em> 109, no. 1 (June 1, 2022): 71, https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1093\/jahist\/jaac118.<\/li>\n
  3. Jonathan Daniel Wells, “Inventing White Supremacy: Race, Print Culture, and the Civil War Draft Riots,” Civil War History<\/em> 68, no. 1 (2022): 56<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

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     <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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