Carnival Reality, the Tea Party Movement and the Normalization of Violence

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Abstract

In this paper, I argue that Tea Party Movement participants are ensconced in what has been called “carnival reality” (e.g.s Langman and Braun 2011, Lundskow ), seductive alternative spaces in which reason and fact are irrelevant in favor of highly simplistic forms of slogan-style wisdom. As part of an undergraduate research seminar in Northern New Jersey in fall 2010, students engaged with Tea Party members in carnival spaces (rallies, meetings, and online discussions). These experiences revealed three basic themes: 1) the public is largely uninformed, improperly educated, or outright “stupid,” 2) the country is being overrun by illegitimate “outsiders” in the form of people of color, particularly those who are immigrants, and liberal intellectuals, all of whom lack morals, intelligence, and a work ethic, and therefore 3) hostility and negation directed at these illegitimate “outsiders” is appropriate, justifiable, and righteous. In the conclusion, I focus on what makes carnival reality so appealing to Tea Party members, and consider the larger implications of a carnivalized social movement, particularly with regard to the normalization of violence.

Author

• Leslie A. Bunnage, Seton Hall University