Cigar Box, Arab
Date1914
Credit LineGift of Dr. J. M. Waters, Strathroy, Ontario, 1992.
Object number1992.002.010
Label TextThe graphics on cigar boxes featured fictional characters, historic figures, and drawings of plants and animals. Some also featured racist depictions of different people, in this instance, Arabs. At the end of the 19th and in the early 20th centuries, when George E. Patrick manufactured these cigars, Arabs were active, vibrant members of Canadian society. Still, the imagery on the box depicts them as foreign and exotic “others.” This aligned with and reinforced the stereotypes and racist ideas that permeated Canadians’ attitudes towards Arab people.
NameBox, Cigar
