Imagining the Heartland: White Supremacy and the American Midwest

The Midwest has long had a significant impact on nationalism and white supremacy, upholding deep-seated convictions about the value of whiteness. Imagining the Heartland provides an answer to how and why the Midwest has played this role in the American imagination, arguing that whiteness, Midwestness, and Americanness are intertwined due to their shared ordinary and homogenized qualities. Neglecting the Midwest means neglecting the production of white supremacist imaginings at their most banal and influential.

Format: Hardback
Length: 234 pages
Publication date: 21 June 2022
Publisher: University of California Press

The Midwest has had a significant and lasting impact on nationalism and white supremacy, often overshadowed by its association with racism in the South. However, it is the Midwest that has upheld some of the most deeply ingrained beliefs about the value of whiteness in the nation. From the noble farmer portrayed by Thomas Jefferson to the iconic character of the Wizard of Oz, the Midwest has been intertwined with the idea of whiteness as desirable and virtuous. Since at least the U.S. Civil War, the Midwest has served as a screen or canvas, projecting and absorbing tropes and values of virtuous whiteness and its opposite, white deplorability. This imagined region has played a crucial role in shaping national and global perceptions of race.

In their book "Imagining the Heartland," anthropologists Britt Halvorson and Josh Reno argue that there is an unexamined affinity between whiteness, Midwestness, and Americanness. This connection is rooted in the shared ordinary and homogenized qualities of these regions. While these qualities may seem unremarkable, they have been carefully cultivated through cultural expressions such as Henry Ford's assembly line and Grant Wood's famous "American Gothic." The Midwest is not just another region among others; it is a political and affective logic in racial projects of global white supremacy. Neglecting the Midwest means neglecting the production of white supremacist imaginings at their most banal and influential, their most locally situated, and their most globally dispersed.

The book explores how the Midwest has been represented in popular culture, media, and literature, and how these representations have contributed to the perpetuation of white supremacy. It also examines the ways in which individuals and communities in the Midwest have resisted and challenged these representations. The Midwest has been a site of racial conflict and transformation, with waves of immigration and migration shaping its identity. The book highlights the ways in which the Midwest has been both a source of resilience and a site of resistance to white supremacy.

In conclusion, "Imagining the Heartland" provides a valuable and timely examination of the Midwest's long influence on nationalism and white supremacy. By exploring the unexamined affinity between whiteness, Midwestness, and Americanness, the book sheds light on the ways in which the Midwest has contributed to the perpetuation of white supremacy. It also offers insights into the ways in which individuals and communities in the Midwest have resisted and challenged these representations. This book is essential reading for anyone interested in understanding the complex and multifaceted history of race and region in the United States.

Weight: 454g
Dimension: 229 x 152 x 20 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780520387607