Human rights and social issues often figure in Pippin’s work, but this painting is particularly overt in its treatment of racism. Clouds hover over a hooded member of the Ku Klux Klan and a burly white man holding a noose. The two menacing figures stand opposite the Statue of Liberty, here painted brown instead of green.

At the center, Mr. Prejudice drives a wedge into a symbolic V for victory, segregating white and black machinists and servicemen. Pippin includes himself as one of the soldiers, wearing a World War I uniform, with his wounded right arm hanging at his side.