I love Dana Spiotta, and loved every minute of the conversation we had a few weeks ago for Electric Lit (pub date July 27th) about her new book Wayward, which is about a white liberal Gen X woman upending her life in response to the 2016 election. Along the way Spiotta skewers liberal white women of all ages, neoliberalism, self-optimization culture, and attendees of the New York State Fair. Highly recommended.
When we spoke, I told Dana how Wayward‘s protagonist, Sam, reminded me of so many of my friends here in blue bubble America, who were shocked, just shocked, when Trump was elected. The same people, who, I might add, are still unaware of the stakes we are up against.
Dana talked about growing up in an era shaped by progress made by radical feminists in the 70s, about how our generation, Gen X, squandered those gains.
I do agree that Gen X is apathetic. I often wonder if our collective apathy could be attributed to the parallel rise of mass incarceration and the troubled teen industry. However, having grown up in white evangelical land, I know that ever since the 1970s, America has been transformed by a Christian nationalist backlash.
I’m currently revising my own book about being raised by Christian nationalists and have been thinking about how, if there is one thing I would love for people to know, it is that Trump is not an anomaly. Christian nationalists have been aligned with the Republican party for decades and have been planning an authoritarian takeover since at least 1971. They are doing their best to stay in power by taking away the right to vote nationwide (see Georgia, Texas, Arizona, fill in the blank.) People in blue bubble America need to wake up and start raising hell.
When Hobby Lobby takes out ads saying “Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord,” they aren’t kidding. There is a Christian nationalist plan to take over America. Decades in the making.
If you’d like to know more, the Straight White American Jesus (SWAJ) podcast, hosted by Brad Onishi and Dan Miller, is an excellent place to learn about Christian nationalism. In their archives, I found the answers to all these rabbit holes I had spent YEARS researching, such as the Christian nationalist plan to take over the government. Brad interviewed me last year about spending my adolescence in boot camp run by white evangelicals in the Dominican Republic. I also talk about being raised Christian nationalist in the Mississippi Delta.
Julie Ingersoll wrote Building God’s Kingdom, which tells the story of RJ Rushdoony, the “father” of the modern Christian nationalist movement, my father’s favorite “intellectual.” Every car trip my dad would drown us out with tapes of Rushdoony’s sermons. Fun times! I’m just stealing from a section of my book here where I attempt to explain my father’s belief system after he became radicalized.
“Rushdoony taught that America was founded as a Christian nation, with no separation of church and state. That the Bible was literally true and dictated every aspect of Christian life. That white men were given dominion over the earth, animals, and “heathen nations.” That women and non-white men were ordained to assume subservient roles.
Rushdoony charged his followers to cleanse America from sin by seizing control of the federal government− eliminating public schools, labor unions, and civil rights laws. Rushdoony wanted to literally apply the 613 laws of Leviticus, stoning disobedient children, unchaste women, “homosexuals,” and practitioners of witchcraft.“
A lot of Trumpers (Pence/ Pompeo/ Barr/ Gorsuch/ Coney-Barrett) are Christian nationalists. Many are also accelerationists, meaning they want things to get completely screwed so the world can end and they can go back to Jesus ASAP. Hence Trump being their “King Cyrus”. Insert your own expletive.
White Evangelical Racism by Dr. Anthea Butler was published this spring, and explains how racism is the core of conservative evangelical activism and power. I love her Twitter feed.
I also love the feed of my friend Chrissy Stroop who writes for RD, Flux Media, and other pubs, and put together an anthology with Lauren O’Neal called Empty the Pews: Stories of Leaving the Church, which has essays written by #exvangelicals, including one by me. Chrissy is also working on her own book about exvangelicals.
I spoke with Katherine Stewart for a Religion Dispatches essay about why, having grown up Christian nationalist, the insurrection was not surprising. She’s incredible. She wrote about the rise of Christian nationalism in the Power Worshippers.
Kathryn Joyce has written about the Quiverfull movement, evangelical adoption, etc.
Know this list is by no means complete. I also recommend Taking Back America for God (Whitehead/ Perry), The Founding Myth (Seidel), Unholy (Posner), Jesus and John Wayne (Kobes Du Mez), etc. Other faves? Please link below.
I realize that if you are like Sam, this all might seem depressing. But don’t despair- knowledge is power. Educate yourself. Call out Christian nationalism.
Otherwise get ready to live in the republic of Hobby Lobby. I’m not even kidding.