Southern hospitality and the politics of African American belonging: an analysis of North Carolina tourism brochure photographs

Abstract

Building upon James “Pete” Shortridge's appreciation for the multiple and contradictory meanings associated with the portrayal of regions, we explore the racial politics of representation within the American South and actively link the study of regional identity with a concern for social justice and African American belonging. Our study of the American South, a region with a long history of limiting if not altogether denying the right of African Americans to travel, exposes the racial inequalities that characterize the seemingly harmless arena of southern hospitality and tourism promotion. Although the power to be seen is an important cultural right, African Americans are frequently made invisible in photographs published in North Carolina tourism brochures. In framing the region in this fashion, these brochures communicate powerful ideas about who is most welcome and, conversely, who is not. Our examination of brochures indicates that some communities are attempting to make a place for African Americans, but there are clear limits in the extent to which promoters are willing to racially re-code travel spaces.