This Cold War-era cartoon “Make Mine Freedom” uses humor to tout the dangers of Communism and the benefits of capitalism, and depicts a satire of perceived life under collectivist ideology. It is one of a series of animated films originally produced by the Extension Dept. of Harding College (now Harding University) and created by John Sutherland in 1948. Sutherland famously voiced the adult Bambi in the 1942 Disney cartoon. He also produced 45 films from 1945–73; many of which were instructional cartoons that extolled the socio-economic concept of capitalism and delivering a political message on the benefits of both corporate and individual liberty, and the drawbacks of government intervention. This particular film “Make Mine Freedom” discusses how wages and productivity are related while promoting the idea that workers need to continually increase production if they want to keep their wages high. The cartoon was financed with a grant from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.

At (0:44), the animated film starts with two people seated at a malt shop, with a poster promoting a special malt and a banner indicating “center hi” in the background. An old jukebox is also present in the room. At (1:50), an old ballot box is displayed, followed by a Statue of Liberty at (1:56). At (2:33), a vendor offers a product named “Dr. Utopia’s ISM for labor,” while a man with a newspaper covering his face appears at (2:38). At (4:35), Joe Doakes Stable is introduced, and a calendar on the wall reveals the date as 1891 at (4:51). A pictogram representing the various types of labor created by the automobile industry is displayed on screen at (6:19). A scene portraying the white lawyer behind bars with a sign stating “state concentration camp” is presented during the hallucination of the consequences of surrendering freedom, which could be triggering (8:32). Statue of President Abraham Lincoln makes an appearance (9:19). The animated film ends (9:29).

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