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1.29.2010

"how to spot a jap"


How about some racist fun for your Friday? Saw this over at You Offend Me You Offend My Family: How to Spot a Jap. This is from an actual pamphlet distributed to American soldiers during World War II.
I've seen this before, but I've never seen a hi-res scan this good before:
Alfredo's post reminded me of a cartoon I came across which was actually used during WWII in a U.S. Army pamphlet distributed to soldiers in a Pocket Guide to China. The section called "How to Spot a Jap" instructed military men on how to distinguish between Japanese and Chinese Americans. I think the bit about how Chinese smile more often because the Japanese expect to be shot "and are unhappy about the whole thing" is particularly hilarious.
Hilarious and kind of scary. It's frightening to think that actual United States Army personnel were seriously referring to this pamphlet to tell the difference between a friendly Chinese person and the evil Japanese enemy. View the comic strip in its entirely here.