Minstrel Shows the Controversial Minstrel

Minstrel Shows

The Controversial Minstrel Show's Legacy

Although their origin was pre-Civil War, minstrel shows were popular until the Civil Rights Era. An egregiously unjust method of parodying the plantation slave, the minstrel shows were an example of the mistreatment of African-Americans that infiltrated American culture for many years, and some still argue exists today. However, some suggest the minstrel shows, despite their political incorrectness, were used to advance the cause of abolition and the back person's rights.

According to Faigin, the minstrel show was invented by folk composer Thomas Daddy Rice, who traveled across the South to study black music and the songs composed by slaves. Creating a show in which he darkened his face with shoe polish and sang in an African-American style, Rice was a hit, creating not only the trend of blackface -- or white people's using makeup to color their faces black in order to portray African-Americans -- but also the cultural tradition of the minstrel show. Often including such characters as Mr. Tambo, Jim Crow, and Zip Coon, the minstrel show was an honest appreciation for African-American music expressing a dislike of African-Americans themselves ("The Minstrel Show," Faigin).

Despite the fact that such a parody would be in great distaste today, and many are ashamed of the show's prime place in history, many American classics, such as Dixie and Camptown Races, had their beginnings in the minstrel show. Furthermore, Faigin maintains that minstrel shows were used for political causes. Some used them to spread abolition and women's rights messages. Others used them to promote the opposite side. In fact, the band that composed Dixie was banned from performing in the North once the song became the Confederate anthem.