Humor Item
Harper's Weekly, December 31, 1864, page 839
"Why, Sambo, how black you are!" said a gentleman the other day to a negro waiter at a hotel; "how in the world did you get so black?" "Why, look a here, massa, the reason am -- de day dis chile was born there was an eclipse."

Note:

Once again, a generic and derogatory name is used to undermine the individuality and dignity of blacks. The black man’s occupation—a waiter—hints at the pervasive discrimination which kept free blacks in low-paying, menial, service-oriented jobs, no matter what abilities they had. Such men and women were not enslaved, but their economic opportunities and liberties were severely limited.

 

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