Political cartoon with a 3 paneled commentary on French and German collaboration

The poster was acquired by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2004. 

Political cartoon with a 3 paneled commentary on French and German collaboration 

overall: Height: 8.375 inches (21.273 cm) | Width: 10.750 inches (27.305 cm) 

Editorial cartoon poster commenting on the October 24, 1940, meeting between Adolf Hitler and Philippe Petain, head of the Vichy government, in Montoire-sur-le-Loir, France, where Petain called for collaboration between France and Germany. The three panels outline the pro and con attitudes: 1. The war is over; peace brings prosperity; 2. Is glorifying Petain the best way to deal with political unrest; 3. Big question: what does the future hold? Germany invaded France in May 1940. In June, Petain signed an armistice, which gave the Germans control of northern and western France, including Paris. The unoccupied territory was governed by a separate regime, based in Vichy, under Petain. While officially neutral, Vichy France cooperated with Germany, and enacted anti-Jewish legislation. 

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Offwhite newsprint poster divided into 3 vertical, rectangular panels with cartoon drawings in oranges, grays, and blacks. The one word title across the top frames the 3 panels; there are boxed captions beneath each image. The left panel has features a man in a blacksmith’s apron with a hammer and anvil shaking hands with a man with a shovel and basket. In the background, a man plows a field and factory chimneys emit smoke. On the upper left is a circle with a man in uniform returning to his family. The center panel presents a large, glorified figure of a man in the background, Petain, in French military uniform with rays emanating from him. In front of him is a crowd of indistinct people clamoring and fighting. In the left foreground, 2 men are arguing; on the right, a caricature of a Jewish man colludes with a man in formal wear to undermine France by stealing the vote and throwing papers symbolizing French honor in a pot. The right panel has a large, red question mark floating over a background with a cloudy sky and desolate landscape; the initials, PJ, are in the lower right corner. On the reverse are penciled numbers and a euro sign.