Similar to racial typecasting today including islamophobia, early American writers framed Mormon church members as being of inferior race and breeding, stemming from polygamous unions, as a way to stereotype and discriminate the early LDS frontier settlers to Utah and other pockets of pioneer territory.

"“[Mormons wear] an expression of countenance and a style of feature, which may be styled the Mormon expression and style; an expression compounded of sensuality, cunning, suspicion, and smirking self-conceit,” his report read. “The yellow, sunken, cadaverous visage; the greenish-colored eyes; the thick, protuberant lips; the low forehead; the light, yellowish hair; and the lank, angular person, constitute an appearance so characteristic of the new race, the production of polygamy, as to distinguish them at a glance.”

The report was subsequently reprinted in a number of respected medical and scientific journals the world over, legitimizing the ostensibly scientific belief in a Mormon race and sparking several other academic articles supporting this view. Over time, these physiological differences melded with existing critiques of Mormon beliefs — many of which ran contrary to Protestant Christianity, America’s dominant religious and cultural group. Nineteenth century Mormon detractors accused the faith of being “incompatible with civilization,” citing the polygamy and, ironically, the tradition’s initial acceptance of non-whites (especially Native Americans) as evidence of a distinctly un-American belief system....

The tragic irony of the effort to dismiss Mormons as non-white was how hard the faith group worked to recast itself as white in response.

Although Mormons accepted people of different racial groups into their fold early on, increased attacks on their racial purity chipped away at the group’s racial self image. With the exception of Native Americans, whom Mormon leaders encouraged their members to marry because they were thought to be another lost tribe of Israel, Mormons slowly shed their inclusive stance throughout the 19th century in favor of a whites-only policy for the church leadership. By the time the Civil Rights movement rolled around in the 1960s, LDS members were finally accepted as certifiably white — but now found themselves on the wrong side of the nation’s pursuit of racial justice."

Maybe not so ironic that the German LDS allied so closely with Nazism, based on their perceived delusion of racial purity within their own ranks?

http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2016/02/12/3748945/when-mormons-werent-white/

Interesting.

Mormons have been racial separatists since their beginning, although to my knowledge have never denied membership to individuals who don't comply. However, their Eternal Marriage Student Manual (2003), still advises the following:

"... [W]e recommend that people marry those who are of the same racial background generally ...."

https://www.lds.org/manual/eternal-marriage-student-manual/marriage-for-eternity?lang=eng

" ...smirking self-conceit"


does resonate, doesn't it ...

Yeah. My pupils dilated when I read that one too. Haha.

Yeah, I read that too and thought, "exactly!"

flds do look different to my eyes. They seem extremely white and rather flabby. Perhaps more German features in the face?

Where I spent the majority of my childhood in the Idaho Morridor just to be dark complected was a minority back then. I mean as in having brown eyes and being a brunette.

Most of my classmates were blonde and blue eyed, from Germanic, and Danish, Swedish & English/Welsh/Scottish/Irish descent.

We had several Native American Indians placed with LDS families through the Mormon foster placement program popular during the 60's. They were our darkest complected races back then.

Today not so much. Whites are singularly becoming the minority race not only in Idaho, but nationally too.

Go figure. The more things 'change' the more they stay the same?

Thinking outside the box isn't what it used to be.

:)

I don't get the impression that they're calling them non-white. And given the fact that most early mormons were from Scandinavia, It's hard to conceive of them thinking they were non-white.

I do find this amusing though: "the Mormon expression and style; an expression compounded of sensuality, cunning, suspicion, and smirking self-conceit"

I remember when in Nauvoo, men were encouraged to take Indian brides, but I don't think anyone did.

Ah, the Mormon smirk. The smug grimace of the righteous. Milk before meat. Contention is of the devil. Follow the prophet, children. Disobedience leads to damnation, &c.

Adult children follow the prophet, the children of adult children follow their parents who are the adult children following the prophet. The Circle of Mormon life.