Dying of Whiteness
How the Politics of Racial Resentment is Killing America's Heartland
New York : Basic Books, 2019.
Format: Book
Edition: First edition.
Description: viii, 341 pages : illustrations ; 25 cm
"With the rise of the Tea Party and the election of Donald Trump, many middle- and lower-income white Americans threw their support behind conservative politicians who pledged to make life great again for people like them. But as Dying of Whiteness shows, the right-wing policies that resulted from this white backlash put these voters' very health at risk--and, in the end, threaten everyone's well-being. Physician and sociologist Jonathan M. Metzl travels across America's heartland seeking to better understand the politics of racial resentment and its impact on public health. Interviewing a range of Americans, he uncovers how racial anxieties led to the repeal of gun control laws in Missouri, stymied the Affordable Care Act in Tennessee, and fueled massive cuts to schools and social services in Kansas. Although such measures promised to restore greatness to white America, Metzl's systematic analysis of health data dramatically reveals they did just the opposite: these policies made life sicker, harder, and shorter in the very populations they purported to aid. Thus, white life expectancies fell, gun suicides soared, and school dropout rates rose. Powerful, searing, and sobering, Dying of Whiteness ultimately demonstrates just how much white America would benefit by emphasizing cooperation, rather than chasing false promises of supremacy"--Publisher's description.
Contents:
Introduction: Dying of whiteness -- Part 1: Missouri -- The cape -- Risk -- Interview : I can't just make it go away -- The man card -- Interview : we gotta take up arms -- Preventative medicine -- Interview : the biggest heart -- What was the risk? -- Interview : the whys and what-ifs -- Trigger warnings -- Part 2: Tennessee -- Unaffordable -- Cost -- In the name of affordable care -- Focus -- Socialism -- Everybody -- De-progressive -- The numbers tell the story -- Part 3: Kansas -- Beneath the surface -- There's no place like home -- The Kansas experiment -- Interview : a downward cycle -- Austerity -- Interview : a bad rap -- The schools -- Interview : the race card -- Congestive heart failure -- Interview : no matter what he does -- Millions of millions -- Conclusion: The castle doctrine.
Subjects:
Medical policy -- United States.
Public health -- United States.
Racism -- Political aspects -- United States.
Whites -- Health and hygiene -- United States.
Whites -- United States -- Social conditions -- 21st century.
Health Status.
Healthcare Disparities.
Health Services Accessibility.
Socioeconomic Factors.
Politics.
Racism.
United States -- Race relations -- Political aspects.
Tennessee.
Missouri.
Kansas.
Missouri.
Tennessee.
Kansas.
Medical policy -- United States.
Public health -- United States.
Racism -- Political aspects -- United States.
Whites -- Health and hygiene -- United States.
Whites -- United States -- Social conditions -- 21st century.
Health Status.
Healthcare Disparities.
Health Services Accessibility.
Socioeconomic Factors.
Politics.
Racism.
United States -- Race relations -- Political aspects.
Tennessee.
Missouri.
Kansas.
Missouri.
Tennessee.
Kansas.
ISBN:
9781541644984
Availability | |||
---|---|---|---|
Call Number | Location | Shelf Location | Status |
HEALTH Society Healthcare Met | St. Andrews Indoors | Nonfiction | In |
HEALTH Society Healthcare Met | Southeast | Nonfiction | Out (Due: 4/6/2024) |
Includes bibliographical references (pages 289-330) and index.