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Abstract
This article examines the relationship between racism and environmental deregulation in President Trump’s first year in office. We collected data on all environmental events, such as executive actions at the federal level or Trump’s tweets. Likewise, we documented racist events targeting indigenous people, people of color, Muslims, and South Asians or Arabs. We found important differences in how these agendas unfolded: Environmental events were more likely to be concrete actions, whereas racist events were more likely to involve “noisy” rhetoric. The differing forms are not associated with particular levels of harm; rather, they suggest the unanticipated and complex ways in which racism intersects with environmental governance under neoliberal, authoritarian regimes. We argue that Trump’s “spectacular racism,” characterized by sensational visibility, helps obscure the profound deregulation underway. The white nation plays a critical role, as Trump uses spectacular racism to nurture his base, consolidate his power, and implement his agenda. Such an analysis expands how environmental racism is typically conceptualized. Key Words: environmental deregulation, spectacular racism, Trump, white nation.
本文检视特朗普总统上任第一年间, 种族主义和环境去管制之间的关系。我们搜集所有环境事件的数据, 诸如联邦层级的行政行动或特朗普的推文。我们同样记录针对原住民族、有色人种、穆斯林、以及南亚或阿拉伯人的种族歧视事件。我们发现, 这些议程开展的方式具有重要的差异：环境事件更倾向是具体的行动, 而种族歧视事件则更可能涉及“嘈杂的”修辞。不同的形式并非关乎特定程度的伤害；反之, 它们指向威权新自由主义政体下, 种族主义和环境治理交叉的非预期与复杂的方式。我们主张, 特朗普以轰动的可见度为特徵的“奇观种族主义”, 有助于掩盖正在进行中的深刻去管制。 特朗普运用奇观种族主义来培养其基层、巩固其权力并执行其议程时, 白人国族扮演了关键角色。此般分析扩展了环境种族主义一般被概念化的方式。关键词：环境去管制, 奇观种族主义, 特朗普, 白人国族。
Este artículo examina la relación entre racismo y desregularización ambiental durante el primer año de gobierno del presidente Trump. Recabamos datos de todos los eventos ambientales, tales como las acciones ejecutivas a nivel federal, o los tuits de Trump. También, documentamos eventos racistas enfocados contra gente indígena, gente de color, musulmanes y asiáticos del sur, o árabes. Encontramos diferencias importantes sobre la manera como estas agendas fueron desplegadas: Seguramente, los eventos ambientales fueron acciones concretas, en tanto que los eventos racistas muy probablemente se revistieron de retórica “ruidosa”. Las formas discrepantes no están asociadas con particulares niveles de daño; más que eso, sugieren el modo imprevisto y complejo como el racismo intersecta con la gobernanza ambiental bajo regímenes neoliberales y autoritarios. Sostenemos que el “espectacular racismo” de Trump, caracterizado por su despliegue sensacionalista, ayuda a ocultar la profunda desregulación que está en marcha. La nación blanca juega un rol crítico a medida que Trump usa el racismo espectacular para nutrir su base, consolidar su poder e implementar su agenda. Tal tipo de análisis amplía la gama de maneras como el racismo ambiental es típicamente conceptualizado.
Acknowledgments
We gratefully acknowledge the research assistance of Cristina Zepeda-Yanez and Aakash Upraity. Versions of this article were presented at the University of Uppsala and Willamette University, where we received very helpful feedback. We alone remain responsible for all shortcomings.
Notes
1 For different articulations of the white nation, see Belew (Citation2018).
2 The students were Tianna Bruno, Bob Craven, Fiona de los Rios-McCucheon, Shiloh Deitz, Cristina Faiver-Serna, Lisa Fink, Cassandra Galentine, Theodore Godfrey, Ben Hinde, Nick Machuca, Katya Reyna, Derek Robinson, Kate Shields, Michael Skaja, Aakash Upraity, Adriana Uscanga Castillo, Shianne Walker, Claire Williams, Olivia Wing, Sara Worl, Jordan Wyant, Cristina Zepeda-Yanez, Holly Moulton, and Natalie Mosman.
3 For evidence on the continued toll that racism takes on African Americans, see Levine et al. (Citation2001), Phelan and Link (Citation2015), and Cunningham et al. (Citation2017).
Additional information
Notes on contributors
Laura Pulido
LAURA PULIDO is Professor of Ethnic Studies and Geography at the University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403. E-mail: lpulido@uoregon.edu. Her research interests include race, comparative ethnic studies, environmental justice, and critical human geography.
Tianna Bruno
TIANNA BRUNO is a Doctoral Student in the Geography Department at the University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403. E-mail: tbruno@uoregon.edu. Her research interests include critical environmental justice, black geographies, political ecology, and critical physical geography.
Cristina Faiver-Serna
CRISTINA FAIVER-SERNA is a Doctoral Candidate in the Geography Department at the University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403. E-mail: cfaiver@uoregon.edu. Her research interests include critical environmental studies, critical race studies, science and technology studies, Latinx geographies, and women of color feminist theory and praxis.
Cassandra Galentine
CASSANDRA GALENTINE is a Doctoral Student in the English Department at the University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403. E-mail: cassieg@uoregon.edu. Her research interests include working-class literature, critical environmental justice studies, and new materialism.