A Low Ball, from the Talk of the Diamond set (N135) issued by Duke Sons & Co., a branch of the American Tobacco Company 1888

This vibrant card, created around 1888 by W. Duke, Sons & Co., presents a peculiar juxtaposition of baseball and blackface minstrelsy. The baseball itself, a symbol of American sport and leisure, shares space with caricatures of African Americans, reflecting the complex social and racial attitudes of the time. Notice how the performance of blackness, evident in the exaggerated features and gestures, echoes through centuries of cultural representation. Consider the banjo, an instrument closely associated with African American music, here rendered as part of a grotesque spectacle. This card reminds us of how deeply ingrained stereotypes can become, manifesting in unexpected places. The dance, here a symbol of entertainment, becomes a painful reminder of the systemic dehumanization present in popular culture. The image, through its unsettling combination of sport and racial caricature, speaks to the hidden, often contradictory, forces shaping our collective memory. It serves as a reminder of the cyclical nature of cultural symbols and the importance of confronting their troubling legacies.