Trujillo Era Sign
This sign was one of many that dictator Rafael Trujillo mandated to be posted across all private homes in the Dominican Republic. “It reads, "In this home Trujillo is a national symbol." "Rectitude. Liberty. Work. Morality." "1955: Year of the Benefactor of the Motherland"” (Lantigua-Williams, 2016) positioning as a destined supreme leader of the country. This signage does not just work as propaganda but also as a symbol of allegiance to the oppressive regime. During Trujillo’s occupation he ordered the killing of 15,000 black Haitian-Dominicans from late-September to October of 1937 in his determination to control the border region between the two countries. Despite the Dominican Republic being heavily dependent on cheap labor of Haitian immigrants his motives can be traced to the ideological colorist belief of blanqueamiento. This ideology aims to “whiten” populations both racially and culturally through ethnic cleansing or the promotion of intermarriage between people of color and invited European settlers. This is clear through Trujillo’s violent anti-Haitianism through oppressive lawmaking shortly following the massacre and through his rule.
This propaganda sign follows the same development of writing systems evolving from representational images that are continually visually abstracted through time. Characters began to convey abstract concepts such as ideas then further, sounds. The evolution of writing systems have fundamentally shaped design in their ability to materialize thoughts and messages without images but rather through characters. Propaganda is effective in its use of language to build the mental infrastructure needed to carry the desired ideology. This sign uses language to align Trujillo as a righteous leader, a national symbol sharing a place in the home of every Dominican. Further the typographic style of characters carry a modern style with its sleek and geometric letterforms, positioning Trujillo as a permanent leader who will shape and be part of the future. Aligning with him is an alignment with his ideals and actions, while not displayed from home to home on a sign, it was felt person to person across the island and has left its mark on a divided island.
https://clacs.berkeley.edu/dominican-republic-bearing-witness-modern-genocide
