Whisk broom, from the Novelties series (N228, Type 3) issued by Kinney Bros. 1889

This is a ‘Whisk broom’ trade card, made by Kinney Brothers Tobacco Company sometime in the late nineteenth century. At this time, the commodification and marketing of tobacco products created a booming market for colorful, pocket-sized advertising cards. What stands out to me is the complex interplay between race, gender, and labor. The figure depicted is an African American woman, her image superimposed onto the bristles of a household cleaning tool. While seemingly benign, these images were circulated in a society deeply shaped by racial stereotypes and the economic exploitation of black individuals, especially women. These advertisements were not simply commercial; they were cultural artifacts that reinforced the racialized and gendered expectations of the time. The woman is reduced to an aesthetic component, overlaid on a domestic object. She is stripped of her identity. We are left to contemplate the emotional and political dimensions of representation, and how these images continue to resonate today.