1. Discrimination in the late 1800s
Beyond typical social classes, the US had a race-based social class system
Minority groups included those based on appearance and religions like Judaism and Catholicism
The definition of “white" changed over time; many European groups, such as Irish and Italians, were not considered “white" when they first immigrated
Minorities were treated like “second – class” citizens:
a person who is denied the social, political, and economic benefits of citizenship or who is not accorded a fair share of respect.

2. Scapegoating
Often when there are problems in society, minority groups are treated like scapegoats- a group that is singled out, unjustifiably blamed, and targeted with hostility
Crime, poverty, loss of jobs blamed on immigrants
Minorities often became the subject of violence:
East St. Louis: Riot of White rioters killed hundreds of black residents of East St. Louis, many of whom were women and children
Los Angeles: Chinese massacre of 1871 in which shops and homes in Chinatown were attacked; at least 18 Chinese were killed by the mob.
New Orleans: 1891, 11 Italians were violently murdered by a lynch mob

3. De Jure Discrimination: By Law
Against African Americans:
Legal segregation in the South after Plessy v. Ferguson (1896)
Voting restrictions like: poll tax, literacy test, and grandfather clause
Against Native Americans:
Forcibly moved by U.S. troops onto reservations in the West
Denied citizenship in the U.S.
Against Chinese Americans:
Immigration restricted by the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882
Denied citizenship until 1943

4. De facto: by custom or tradition
Against African Americans:
Racial etiquette held blacks to different standards than whites
black men had to remove the hat to whites and move off of the sidewalk to let whites pass
Forced into “segregated” neighborhoods in the North
Against many minority groups:
discrimination in wages and the type of jobs available; last hired and the first fired
Many minority groups were labeled with derogatory ethnic slurs (bad names) and were negatively stereotyped
Dago (U.S.) an Italian (possibly a reference to the name Diego)

5. Examples of Ethnic Discrimination

7. 1899 cartoon depicting Asians negatively.

15. Reconstruction Primary Sources

18. Harper's Weekly cartoon by Thomas Nast

20. March 23, 1867 By Thomas Nast commentary on President Andrew Johnson's veto of the military government bill

21. September 5, 1868 "This Is a White Man's Government."
By Thomas Nast.
Democratic platform for the presidential election of 1868
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