- One reason is Trump has a particular, well-documented hatred toward Haitians.
- Another reason is Trump and Vance appear not to be interested in helping anyone in Springfield, or anywhere else for that matter.
- Trump’s and Vance’s statements reveal a belief that it would be better to leave dying towns in the Midwest to wither away than revive them and have to share that prosperity with people who are Black, and they seem to be betting that enough American voters in enough swing states agree that it would be better to be broke than integrated.
I live in Wisconsin, and last year we reelected Ron Johnson (who I think may just be the dumbest person alive). Everyone has a reason it happened, but very few folks will acknowledge that part of the problem was that his opponent, Mandela Barnes, is a black man. Middle America is still incredibly racist, and for some reason we aren’t comfortable just calling it out.
Not even middle America.
I grew up in Eastern Washington state, a place with a lot of farms and farmers. Due to that also a lot of immigrant labor.
I grew up in the “progressive” Pacific Northwest with lots of local businesses that had “English Only” signs, making clear to immigrants that they’re not really welcome in such establishments. It hasn’t really gotten better.
Please forgive my trifling quibble, but isn’t that the Intermountain West (which is rarely if ever described broadly as progressive), not the Pacific Northwest – since you were east of the Cascade range?
I’ve lived all over the country, and that distinction means nothing to anyone outside of the Northwest. Sure, it’s correct to call it that, if you’re being real pedantic, but if you go down South for instance, “Pacific Northwest” means Washington, Idaho, Oregon, and they still consider that region a whole lot more liberal than it actually is.
Secondly, having also lived on the west side of the Cascades… that’s less of a distinction than really matters. Like everywhere, it’s actually the cities that matter, and outside the cities its as racist and backward as anywhere else.
So I feel pretty confident in calling that the Pacific Northwest in what most average Americans would think of when they considered it. Not to say most Americans suck at geology and geography (that’s actually exactly what I’m saying) but I wouldn’t think most would be able to point to the Cascades on a map, let alone understand the distinction between the two.
So you’re correct in your quibbling, but also in the context of my response to OP, we’re talking about a reluctance to call middle America what it is: racist. I would think quibbling about saying “we already knew demographically that they’re not progressive” kind of misses that point.
Spokane here, no one outside of a survey team would call it that.
“Inland Empire” maybe, but that’s about as specific as “Tri-Cities” or “the lake”. PNW is the tri-state area of WA/OR/ID in casual conversation.
Where and when was that? I’ve lived on both sides of Washington for 40 years and have never seen any “English only” signs.