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Module
Introduction
Filipino artists are almost visible in all forms of arts. Many Filipinos can draw figures
in papers which they observe from their surroundings. This type of skill was used by most
Filipino Artists during the colonial periods, particularly during the American regime where
censorship of political expressions was prevailing. Many artists translate their views and
opinions against the American colonial government through their pen and paper, mostly in
drawing. Caricature is one of the modes of expressing their sentiments against those acts
which are offensive to many Filipinos. Renown political historian, Alfred McCoy together
with Filipino cartoonist, Alfredo Roces, teamed-up in compiling the Philippine cartoons
published during the American era.
This is the seventh series of the nine (9) historical accounts in Philippine history
presented in this module.
Topics
Background of the Authors
Historical Background of the Philippine cartoons
Context Presentation of Some Philippine Cartoons
o Memories of the Visit (Recuerdos de la Visita)
o The New Democracy
o The Director’s Confidantes (El Confidente del Director)
o The Procession
o Equal Opportunity
Context Analysis of McCoy’s Philippine Cartoons
Contribution and Relevance of McCoy and Roces’ Philippine Cartoons Book in
Understanding the Grand Narrative of Philippine History
Learning Objectives
Contextual Analysis of Selected Primary Sources in Philippine History (Miguel, Rosario and Abalos)Page 124
Philippine Cartoons: Political Caricatures of the American Era by McCoy and Reyes (Module 4. PS 7.)
Readings in Philippine History
Contextual Analysis of Selected Primary Sources in Philippine History (Miguel, Rosario and Abalos)Page 125
Philippine Cartoons: Political Caricatures of the American Era by McCoy and Reyes (Module 4. PS 7.)
Readings in Philippine History
The Spanish colonial period in the Philippines was characterized by strict censorship
resulting in a lack of political liberty and minimal avenues for expressing political views.
Spanish censorship banned non-religious publications, thus compelling newspaper
publications to be distributed underground. However, the transition to the American
colonial period provided leeway in the publication of independent newspapers. Initially,
newspapers were scrutinized by the government to ensure that they did not contain anti-
American sentiments which were branded as subversive and were confiscated. As such, the
four decades of the American colonial rule became a formative period in Philippine history.
Censorship was loosened when civil government was established in 1901. This gave
Filipinos the right to publish without prior censorship of the government. Two months after
strict censorship was removed, Rafael Palma launched El Renacimiento (Rebirth) which
became the most influential of the early nationalist newspapers campaigning for the right to
a free press. Whenever the American felt offended with any publication, they used libel and
sedition laws to obstruct the developing hostilities. After facing two livet suits, El
Renacimiento had to discontinue. Nevertheless, Martin Ocampo and Fernando Ma. Guerrero
established a new publication, La Vanguardia, in the same office and survived until World
War II as one of Manila’s leading newspapers.
There are several political cartoons presented by McCoy in his book which are
compilations taken from different newspapers and magazines.
Contextual Analysis of Selected Primary Sources in Philippine History (Miguel, Rosario and Abalos)Page 126
Philippine Cartoons: Political Caricatures of the American Era by McCoy and Reyes (Module 4. PS 7.)
Readings in Philippine History
This is a political cartoon bannered by the Philippines Free Press on December 11,
1920. The cartoon mocked Senator Lope K. Santos for introducing a bill requiring all
mountain people to wear lowland dress and change their names or be imprisoned for 30
days to five years. Santos’ bill triggered outbursts from the minorities who seemed were
violated by their rights and culture. The American imperialist government used the
minorities as propaganda against the Filipino nationalists who thought that they cannot
control the minorities and
have no power to
transform these people.
This thinking had led the
American government to
extend their rule in the
Philippines knowing that
the lowland people have
no control to the
minorities and granting
Philippines independence
is not yet viable. Sad to
learned that the
minorities like the Igorots
were made as a show y
the Americans in their
homeland where they
were toured and exposed
to different states and
Contextual Analysis of Selected Primary Sources in Philippine History (Miguel, Rosario and Abalos)Page 127
Philippine Cartoons: Political Caricatures of the American Era by McCoy and Reyes (Module 4. PS 7.)
Readings in Philippine History
performed their culture wearing their traditional clothes. This act was degrading to the
Filipinos.
This cartoon is published by Lipag Kalabaw on April 25, 1908 which shows a group of
Filipino medical doctors pleading with Commissioner of Public Health Dr. Victor G. Heiser
to employ them as public health doctors. Interior Secretary Dean C. Worcester and his
subordinate Dr. Heiser had rebuffed many qualified Filipino applicants and imported
American doctors, a policy that angered nationalists and split the Philippine commission
along racial lines, Filipino and American, in 1907. While conservative Commissioners like
Cameron Forbes believed Filipino doctors incompetent and supported Worcester, the
Filipino commissioners, notably, Dr. T.H. Pardo de Tavera, attacked the policy. With the
advent of Governor–General Harrison in 1913, the medical training was expanded and
Filipino doctors were given preference.
The Procession
Another caricature published by Lipag Kalabaw on July 27, 1907 depicts a procession
where Municipal candidate for 1908 Manila election, Miguel Velasco joined the procession
intended to gain votes from the people. Velasco gained the support of the Catholic church
which stirred some outburst from outrage secular nationalists. The procession waves the
banner of the Centro Catolico, a vigorous lay organization that tried to maintain Catholic
influence in areas such as education and politics. Attempts to lobby for appointment of
Catholic teachers bought the Centro into conflict with Education Secretary James F. Smith,
Contextual Analysis of Selected Primary Sources in Philippine History (Miguel, Rosario and Abalos)Page 128
Philippine Cartoons: Political Caricatures of the American Era by McCoy and Reyes (Module 4. PS 7.)
Readings in Philippine History
himself a Catholic. The other banner is for the Liga Anti-Pornografica, a moral regeneration
movement that tried to recover, on an informal basis, the censorship powers the church had
enjoyed under Spain.
Equal Opportunity
This economic cartoon depicted by Lipag Kalabaw on October 31, 1908 shows two
big fat American men carrying sacks of money while they drag a skinny Filipino man, Juan
dela Cruz, on his neck forcing him to vomit money in pesos from his mouth.
Contextual Analysis of Selected Primary Sources in Philippine History (Miguel, Rosario and Abalos)Page 129
Philippine Cartoons: Political Caricatures of the American Era by McCoy and Reyes (Module 4. PS 7.)
Readings in Philippine History
Two of the most visible American Corporations during the first decade of American
rule were Atlantic Gulf and Pacific Company (AGPC) and Manila Electric Road railway and
Light Company (MERALCO). The AGPC had won lucrative contracts for construction of an
entire new port of Manila, the US Navy coaling station at Sangley point and marine railway
for the Philippine Coast Guard. The MERALCO, on the other hand, was awarded a contract
for Manila’s electrical generation and light rail transport. Meralco’s contract guaranteed it a
50 year monopoly with the right to fix its own power and transport rerates for 25 years. The
company charged the highest rail rates fares in Asia and forced most of the City’s working
class to walk to work. The two big companies name were depicted in their clothings
The efforts made by Alfred McCoy and Alfredo Roces in compiling the cartoons
published in the different newspapers and magazines in the Philippines during the
American era were remarkable. The various cartoons depicted the scenarios in the
Philippines from politics, economic and socio-cultural. Each cartoon was presented,
described and analysed by the authors.
Though the Filipinos were happy being freed from the Spanish rule, their complete
liberty is not yet achieved as they again ruled by the Americans. While democracy has been
introduced by the US government to the Philippines, some areas were still kept in control
like press freedom. The Filipino nationalists were against this American policy so many
have established their own publishing companies to express their opinions. Many of those
expressed their resentments through satiric cartoons where everybody can easily gasp and
awaken their minds against the colonialism.
The selected cartoons illustrate not only the opinion of certain media outfits about
the Philippine society during the American period but also paint a broad image of society
and political under the United States. In the area of politics, it is clear that the Filipinos paid
the price for democracy modelled after the Americans. Patronage became influential and
powerful, not only between clients and patrons, but also between the newly formed political
parties composed of the elite and the United States. Thus, the essence of competing political
parties to enforce choices among voters was cancelled out. The problem continues up to the
present where politicians transfer one party to another depending on which party was
powerful in specific period of time.
The Cartoons also illustrated the convictions of poor Filipinos under American
regime. From the looks of it, it seemed nothing has much changed. For example, a cartoon
depicted how police authorities oppress petty Filipino criminals while turning blind eye on
hoarders who monopolize goods in their huge warehouses.
The book of McCoy and Roces on Philippine Cartoons was a great eye opener for
every Filipinos who want to learn something on the plight of the Filipinos under the
American rule. This compilation of Philippine cartoons from political, socio-cultural and
economic scenarios was a remarkable as it awakens the minds of every Filipinos to love and
protect their country against any oppressors based on what they learned from the cartoons
Contextual Analysis of Selected Primary Sources in Philippine History (Miguel, Rosario and Abalos)Page 130
Philippine Cartoons: Political Caricatures of the American Era by McCoy and Reyes (Module 4. PS 7.)
Readings in Philippine History
presented. The limited freedom of expression among Filipinos during the American period
was intelligently circumvented by our Cartoonists and Cartographers through cartoons
where they depicted all the scenarios they observed from their surroundings. They have
captured the hearts of many Filipinos based on their contextual analysis of the cartoons they
have featured.
Contextual Analysis of Selected Primary Sources in Philippine History (Miguel, Rosario and Abalos)Page 131
Philippine Cartoons: Political Caricatures of the American Era by McCoy and Reyes (Module 4. PS 7.)
Readings in Philippine History
Exercise 4.13.
IDENTIFICATION:
______________1. The main author of the Philippine Cartoons: Political caricatures of the
American Era.
______________2. Weekly newspaper founded by Vicente Sotto.
______________3. Popular newspaper in Cebu, tagged as “New Force”.
______________4. Founder of the Philippine Free Press.
______________5. Newspaper founded by Rafael Palma.
Exercise 4.14.
1. What makes cartoons popular among Filipinos during the American period?
2. Create a political cartoon depicting today’s era and explain it.
Contextual Analysis of Selected Primary Sources in Philippine History (Miguel, Rosario and Abalos)Page 132
Philippine Cartoons: Political Caricatures of the American Era by McCoy and Reyes (Module 4. PS 7.)
Readings in Philippine History
References
Candelaria, J.P and V.C. Alporha. 2018. Readings in Philippine history. Rex Book Store.
Manila, Philippines. 144 p.
Constantino, R. 2010. A history of the Philippines. Monthly Press Review. Quezon City,
Philippines.
Ileto, R. 1997. Pasyon and Revolution: Popular Movements in the Philippines, 1840-1910.
Ateneo de Manila University Press. Manila, Philippines.
McCoy, A. and A. Roces. 1985. Philippine Cartoons. Political caricature under American era
1900-1941. Vera-Reyes Inc.
Tan, S. 2009. A history of the Philippines. University of the Philippinbes Press. . Quezon
City, Philippines.
Torres, J.V. 2018. Batis. Sources in Philippine history. C and E Publishing. Quezon City,
Philippines.682 p.
Contextual Analysis of Selected Primary Sources in Philippine History (Miguel, Rosario and Abalos)Page 133
Philippine Cartoons: Political Caricatures of the American Era by McCoy and Reyes (Module 4. PS 7.)