African dodger

{{Short description|American carnival game}}

{{use mdy dates|date=November 2023}}

File:AfricaDodger.jpg

African dodger, also known as Hit the Coon or Hit the Nigger Baby, was a carnival game played in the United States. In the game, an African American would stick his head through a curtain, and attempt to dodge objects, such as eggs or baseballs, thrown at him by players. It was a popular carnival game from the 1880s up to the 1960s.{{cite web |last=MacGuill |first=Dan |date=February 28, 2018 |title=FACT CHECK: Was a Violently Racist Carnival Game Once Popular in America? |url=https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/racist-carnival-game/ |website=Snopes |access-date=July 4, 2020}}{{cite AV media |date=June 11, 2014 |title=Blacks as Targets |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4oCL99mrRk |publisher=Jim Crow Museum of Racist Memorabilia |via=YouTube |access-date=July 4, 2020}} The victims often suffered serious injuries.{{cite web |last=Hughes |first=Franklin |date=October 2012 |title=The African Dodger |url=https://www.ferris.edu/HTMLS/news/jimcrow/question/2012/october.htm |website=Questions for the Museum |publisher=Jim Crow Museum of Racist Memorabilia |access-date=July 4, 2020}}{{cite web |last=DeVega |first=Chauncey |date=June 12, 2015 |title=Black men are target practice: America's grotesque history of racist games |url=https://www.salon.com/2015/06/12/black_men_are_target_practice_americas_grotesque_history_of_racist_games_partner/ |website=Salon.com |access-date=July 4, 2020}} Smaller kit-based versions of the game were also sold to be played at home.

A Popular Mechanics article from 1910 noted that African dodger had become "too old and commonplace" and was being replaced with dunk tanks in which African Americans would fall into a tank of water when a target was hit with a ball. The illustration accompanying the article shows a game labeled "Drop the Chocolate Drop" and is captioned "Amusing to All but the Victim".{{cite magazine |date=November 1910 |title=Successor to the "African Dodger" |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-N0DAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA693 |magazine=Popular Mechanics |publisher=Hearst Magazines |volume=14 |page=693 |number=5 |access-date=July 4, 2020}}