Twitter and the Faces of Whiteness: Investigating Official Responses to the Death of George Floyd

Abstract

Republican politicians unabashedly condemn the use of critical race theory (CRT) as a pedagogical framework for educators. While most Democrats have quickly come to the defense of CRT, even they are socialized through White supremacist practices. Connecting CRT to the theory of impression management, this paper reveals how Minnesota politicians (both Republicans and Democrats) and government officials used Twitter during a pivotal time in U.S. history—the murder of George Floyd. Examining these theories in relation to the faces of whiteness, we reveal how language of support by government officials and Republican and Democrat politicians may perpetuate White supremacy in overt and camouflaged ways.