African Americans in Asheville (select)

African Americans in Asheville (select)

Please note most of Borne’s depictions of African Americans are racist caricatures. Borne's cartoons provide a window into institutionalized societal racism, and they highlight the barriers that limited economic prosperity and social equality for African Americans. At the same time, especially insofar as Asheville’s economy relied on tourism, hotels, and urban recreation, Borne’s cartoons demonstrate how Asheville’s African American population helped bring about Asheville’s first golden age. Finally, the cartoons demonstrate African American resistance to the racism and social inequality of the era.