Problematizing Political Nostalgia: Conspiracy Theorism and White Nationalism

• In Event: Shortcomings of Democracy and the Path Forward

Abstract

How ought we understand the rise of conspiracy fueled white nationalism in the United States? In this paper, I show that there are two key components to making sense of this American phenomenon: first, the dominance of nostalgic rhetoric among conservatives, and second, the crisis of the COVID-19 pandemic. Political nostalgia has not only consolidated political power in the hands of those historically most privileged but has also dangerously spread and empowered radical white nationalism in a time where uncertainty abounds. But how should nostalgia be conceptualized? Who is nostalgic? How does nostalgia manifest violent political effects? I show that feelings of nostalgia are distinct in three ways: first, nostalgia is reliant upon forms of collective narratives and prosthetic memory; second, it is precipitated by feelings of loss; and third, it functions as a misremembering which can ameliorate immediately perceived threats and crises that drum up fear and anxiety. I argue that nostalgia is a collective political feeling which has – in conjunction with the pandemic – created a breeding ground for conspiracy theories to strengthen and flourish. Accordingly, conspiracy theories have provided the glue to solidify a significant coalition of white nationalists, and they have garnered the support of a wide swath of Americans now willing to fight against those “who would tear America apart”. In this paper, I display the ways in which nostalgic feelings have been manipulated as a means of excusing or even justifying the resurgence of violent conspiratorial white nationalism, and caution against reducing reactionary conservatism at its worst – in this case, as violent white nationalism – to mere nostalgia. An analysis of nostalgia as a feeling of loss, as a manipulable political affect, and as a ground for conspiratorial mindsets is both intellectually and politically key to interpreting the events leading up to and including January 2021.

Author

• Candice K Travis, University of Massachusetts, Amherst