Man ‘In Disbelief’ at Racist Find Hidden in Goodwill Purchase

A man in Virginia was stunned to discover a racist greeting card dating back to 1938 hidden with a purchase from his local Goodwill store.

When Luke Cerutti from Richmond purchased what he thought was a box of blank greeting cards for $2.99 at a thrift store, he could never have predicted what he would find inside.

“When I got home and opened the box, I was surprised to find the old card hidden at the bottom of the stack,” Cerutti told Newsweek. “As soon as I picked it up, I knew it carried a heavy history.”

A warning to readers: some may find the illustrations in this story offensive. The image on the front of the card is a racist caricature of a Black child, while language printed alongside it played into the harmful stereotypes of the period.

According to a copyright mark on the back of the card, it was printed by Hallmark in 1938. Newsweek has reached out to Hallmark for comment.

The discovery of the card left Cerutti “shocked and in disbelief.”

“This wasn’t just an old greeting card; it was an artifact of a time when racist imagery was commonplace in everyday life,” Cerutti said.

Alongside the racist card, Cerutti found a handwritten note penned by someone called Mattie to a friend named Viola. What struck Cerutti about the note was how “warm and well-intentioned” it sounded. Mattie expressed sympathy for Viola’s hospitalization and promised to visit her soon.

Yet Mattie then signed off by saying, “I thought this card cute so am passing it on to you.”

Cerutti said: “This simple statement, written without irony, underscores how normalized this kind of imagery was at the time. What we now recognize as offensive and dehumanizing was once seen as lighthearted and acceptable—even charming enough to share with a sick friend.”

The discovery was timely for Cerutti, who had recently visited the Smithsonian’s Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C.

“I saw powerful exhibits detailing our nation’s painful history with racism,” he said. “Holding this card in my hands, I felt a similar weight. It was a reminder that history isn’t always found in museums; it sometimes hides in the everyday objects we overlook.”

James Herrera-Brookes, Ph.D., Melanie Trent De Schutter Sr. director of research & publications at the Virginia Museum of History & Culture, discussed Cerutti’s find with Newsweek.

“Items like this postcard were part of a popular culture that employed racist imagery that had its roots in minstrel shows and other cultural forms dating back to the early 19th century,” Herrera-Brookes said.

“Into the mid-20th century, objects like this postcard and the tropes they communicated were commonplace in everyday society and consumer culture.”

To Cerutti, the discovery of the card served as a “stark reminder of how far we’ve come and how much work remains in confronting the legacy of racism in American culture.”

Eager to engage in that debate, Cerutti took to social media, posting pictures of the card to Reddit under the handle u/PlogWithMe. In a matter of days, he garnered over 8 million views and thousands of comments.

“History like this shouldn’t be forgotten. It’s crucial to acknowledge it in order to learn from the past and move forward,” he said. “The power of media and advertising in shaping attitudes is undeniable, and by confronting these painful truths, we can inspire positive change and foster meaningful conversations that drive progress toward a more just future.”

Cerutti is now planning on donating the card to a museum or college. That’s something the Virginia Museum of History & Culture would encourage.

A spokesperson for the museum told Newsweek: “The Virginia Museum of History & Culture preserves and presents historical materials in their original state to foster scholarship and interpretation of history and tell the full, often complex story of Virginia and our nation.”