Finding ‘the economy’ in Minnesota and Michigan
My PhD proposal in 2019 was initially motivated by one question: when people say they are acting politically for ‘the economy’, do we actually know what they mean? Then in April 2020, a group of conservative activists began protesting stay-at-home orders under the mantra: ‘Reopen the economy.’ Less than six weeks later, the opposite side of the political spectrum protested for a different economic campaign – ‘Defund the Police’ – following the murder of George Floyd.
With the support of research funding from the PSA’s American Politics Group, the British Association of American Studies and the University of Warwick’s Politics and International Studies department, I travelled to Lansing, MI (site of the Operation Gridlock anti-lockdown protesters) and Minneapolis, MN (where George Floyd was murdered) in September 2023 to ask supporters of these movements to describe ‘the economy’ to me in their own words.
My first stop was Minneapolis, where I quickly made my way to George Floyd Square (GFS). Local activists in Minneapolis still holding meetings at GFS every day at 8am and 7pm. I almost instantly understood the BLM conception of ‘the economy’ from one sign that reads: ‘People over property.’ Floyd’s interaction with the police that ended his life began with nothing more than an allegation of the use a counterfeit $20.
The organisers were busy with many activities, but amongst these was planning a vigil for Cristian Rivera-Coba, who had died only a few weeks early of water toxicity while in police custody. The vigil was meant to amplify pleas from Cristian’s family for accountability for his death, but it was also a time to grieve. The Kalpulli Yaocenoxtli, a Mexica-Nahua (Aztec) cultural group, performed dances, prayers and traditional acts of mourning.
Maybe this all feels quite separate from the Covid-19 pandemic, but every GFS meeting begins with a recitation of assumptions. The first? ‘Assume everyone has Covid. Act accordingly. Mask up or back up.’ I met Ashley at the meetings, who explained during our interview:
‘… Like during COVID, right? [People are] like, “the economy’s failing.” … like, “No one’s working anymore.” That’s ‘cause they all died! Because they all die. People literally died.’
Ashley underscored an important perspective from this community: the association between ‘the economy’ and death.
My next stop was Lansing. However, it was less obvious where I could find Reopen protesters. The Michigan Conservative Coalition was the principal organiser of the local protests against Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s emergency orders to mitigate the spread of Covid-19. However, this organisation was temporarily shut as both co-founders of the group – Meshawn Maddock and Marion Sheridan – were charged for alleged participation in the fake electors scheme.
However, I had one lead: Angela Rigas had participated in Operation Haircut, the second protest. Following a fine for her participation, Rigas ran for and was elected to the Michigan House of Representatives. I simply walked to her legislative office and asked her aides for advice. Her aide’s recommendations proved essential to finding events where I recruited most of my interviewees.
This included Patriot Week. Founded by a local judge in Michigan, Patriot Week is observed from September 11th (the anniversary of the terrorist attacks) to September 17th (Constitution Day) with the intention of ‘Renewing the Spirit of America’. The organisers planned panels and citizen discussion tables on topics such as ‘Limited Government’, ‘Gender Equality’ and ‘Unalienable Rights’.
It was at a Patriot Week event where I met Nicole, who explained:
‘I guess everything probably has a bearing on the economy, right? … For me, the idea of economics encompasses things that normally people wouldn’t think of, like even in our religious beliefs. And how we’re stewards of the economy.’
Although religion was somewhat visible in my desk research, this conversation with Nicole accentuated how important faith was to everyday conceptions of ‘the economy’ to this community.
My viva will take place this Thursday (as of the writing of this blog), a little over a year after I completed my fieldwork. With my completed thesis submitted for examination, I can see so clearly now this fieldwork was instrumental in the formation of my substantial original contribution: uncovering these contested understandings of one of the most important concepts in American politics.