The Birth of a Race

Interesting poster the man is holding.  Is it a reference to the movie Birth of a Nation, and is it a racial call to arms?  The Birth of a Nation was, after all, instrumental in the rebirth of the Ku Klux Klan.  Well, I threw that out as a possibility, but I also have to admit, more than likely, the poster refers to an actual car race, and the wording is probably no more than a play on what was the most popular movie of it's era. 

Written on the back, "Real wicked. Myself-Don-and The Monroe."  The Monroe Car Company was in business from 1914 to 1923 under various ownership groups and made at different locations.  The Monroe was built for speed and was the winning car in a number of races including the Indy 500.  Swiss racer Gaston Chevrolet was a fan of The Monroe and drove one to a number of victories.  Gaston's brother, Louis Chevrolet, also a racer, founded Chevrolet Motor Cars. 

Here's a fun fact, Albert Champion, another European immigrant, a track bicycle racer, founded AC Ignition systems, the maker of spark plugs.  For reasons lost to history, he and Louis Chevrolet got into a fight, and Chevrolet nearly beat the French born Albert  Champion to death.