The Southern mind and the savage ideal: deconstructing identities of place in the Cracker State

ABSTRACT

This qualitative study discusses one Southern college of education and its engagement with White supremacy. This research stemmed from the Institution’s publication of an offensive catalog cover and the subsequent reactions to its inherent racism. Following this incident, our institution was dubbed ‘Cracker State’ in the media, informing our decision to analyze the historical connotations of this term for our pre-service educators. Utilizing Critical Whiteness Studies and Southern epistemology frameworks, we reconceptualize White Fragility while pulling from this experience and data collected to advance a strategy for confronting Southern White supremacy. Participants included 154 majority White and female students. Data stemmed from document analysis and two years of empirical data drawn from classroom discussions and student assignments. Due to the demographics and location of our college, we utilize the autobiographical demand of place and pay particular attention to understanding the influence of the South on the development of our students’ ideology. We explore this Southern place utilizing the following themes: (1) romantic fictions, (2) the specter of guilt, (3) God’s chosen people, and (4) the final great tragedy of the South. The goal is to begin a conversation regarding place-based pedagogy.