Abstract
Abstract Although public responses to national and international crises are never without contestations and conflicting truth claims, the COVID-19 pandemic draws attention to the stark political and cultural divisions presented by conservative populism in the age of the Tea Party Movement and Donald Trump. Beginning with research among Tea Party activists in 2010 and continuing through the Trump Administration and “reopen” protests, I have documented a shifting cultural world of right-wing populism. The vivid and symbolically elaborate performance of patriotism and indignation by the Tea Party Movement declined in 2012, being replaced by a more belligerent and less colorful form of populism with Donald Trump. As Trump-inspired protests opposing COVID-19 mitigation policies emerged in 2020, however, Tea Party themes and symbols reemerged as frames for resistance to government restrictions. Yet, despite the shifting styles, there was a constant theme of what I term “fundamentalist populism.” This style illustrates political identities characterized by vilification of opponents, distrust of existing political and social institutions, ideological rigidity, and a rededication to individualism and personal freedom. Ethnographic and documentary research shows how these themes animate a small yet vocal resistance to the science-based and cooperative guidelines prescribed by public health experts
Highlights
I parked my car a few blocks away from the South Carolina State House grounds
The flag has historic roots in the early days of the republic; more recently the flag has come to be identified with the Tea Party Movement and its unique style of American right-wing populism
Donald Trump has latched onto the resentment and demonization of right-wing fundamentalist populism and turned it into a bare-knuckled political style
Summary
I parked my car a few blocks away from the South Carolina State House grounds. I could see scattered individuals looking like they were heading to a political rally carrying American flags and large cardboard placards. Instead of large numbers of people congregating together marching and chanting, the protest would consist of cars and trucks driving through the streets around the state capitol with signs, flags, and blaring horns They were protesting the orders by South Carolina governor Henry McMaster shuttering all “non-essential” businesses to slow the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. I deploy the term “fundamentalist populism” to describe the politics of both the Tea Party Movement and reopen activists: both groups are populist, placing stark differences between “the people” and the “other,” and fundamentalist, due to their demonization of the “other” and their inflexible ideology (Westermeyer, 2019) This particular populism produces identities characterized by steadfast ideas about American cultural identity. After describing the Tea Party themes and the shift in conservative discourses from the Tea Party to Trump, I will investigate three sites where this meaning system is visible
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary 
Published Version (
Free)
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call