Picture a small town in America. What is the image that comes up in your head? For many, it is a picturesque scene of quaint houses, bustling farms, and a predominantly White population. As someone that has spent her entire life in a rural town, this description closely resembles the environment in which I grew up. Now, as I have left the area and moved to the bustling city of Philadelphia for college, I have connected with a plethora of people who say they come from similar, middle-of-nowhere areas as I do. However, the similarities end there. A number of my friends come from rural communities that are mostly made up of Latino, Black, or Indigenous Americans, which has made me come to realize how misconstrued my own perceptions were about rural America.
Unfortunately, I am not alone in my assumptions: fifty-four percent of Americans who live in urban areas still hold this harmful view. While this misleading image has been prevalent for decades, it gained significant traction during the Trump era. Media outlets frequently portrayed rural residents as uneducated, White conservatives in an effort to describe Donald Trump’s voter base. Although the bulk of Trump’s votes came from this specific demographic of people, they certainly do not represent all of rural America. These misconceptions are not only inaccurate, but they also create considerable setbacks when addressing the real issues—poverty, inaccessibility to adequate healthcare—that affect these communities.
Aside from the “uneducated, White conservative” stereotype, there are countless other misconstrued views about rural America. However, they can easily be debunked.
Debunking False Narratives
1. “Rural America = White America”
Despite the assumption that rural America is homogeneously White, the 2020 census revealed that twenty-four percent of the population of rural areas were people of color, with the most dominant groups being Black Americans, Latino Americans, and Indigenous Americans. In the rural South, the minority population mostly consists of Black people, whereas places like eastern Oklahoma, the Four Corners area, the northern tier of the Great Plains, and Alaska find their rural communities dominated by Indigenous people. Moreover, Asian Americans are the largest minority population in rural Hawaii and some areas of Alaska, with other pockets spread throughout states like California, Minnesota, and New Hampshire.
Most notably, the rural Latino and Hispanic population is the fastest-growing demographic in rural America, while the growth of other minority groups appears to remain constant. This substantial increase can be attributed to the influx of immigration for the purpose of seeking jobs or to start business to sustain a livelihood.
Furthermore, this data only depicts rural communities in which the dominant population is people of color. Even in predominantly White areas, there is still a presence of these same minority groups. Nearly 1 million people of color live in predominantly white areas– a number that should not be overlooked.
2. “Rural Americans Are All Conservatives”
When taking a glimpse at a bright red and blue colored electoral map, one tends to take away the idea that the blue areas are largely condensed in cities while red dominates rural regions. Even though Republican candidates like Donald Trump garner the support of mostly rural voters, thirty-three percent of Joe Biden’s voters in the 2020 presidential election were from rural areas. Furthermore, a good portion of the younger population of these regions is Democratic, with forty-seven percent voting blue in 2020.
Many of these false assumptions develop into feelings of resentment toward rural America. For example, the phenomenon known as “White Rural Rage” was a term coined to describe the perceived political leanings of White rural Americans. Rural Americans are often labeled with traits that portray them as racist, homophobic, or xenophobic, making them a “danger to American democracy.” While some individuals may share those presented attitudes, it does not speak for the entire demographic. Through making such harsh and overarching claims, hatred is promoted.
Ultimately, this narrative villainizes rural America and worsens the divide between the rural and the urban. By portraying them in this negative light, it completely disregards and mutes their voices. In actuality, most rural Americans just want recognition and respect and are not filled with violent rage towards minorities.
3. “Rural Americans Do Not Care About Politics”
Rural Americans are often characterized as “country bumpkins” that are only concerned about keeping up with small town happenings, such as maintaining their farms or managing the burdens of a local tax. However, they are highly attuned to national issues. Surveys have shown that residents of large cities and small towns are remarkably similar in their engagement with national news. More specifically, rural Americans show a heightened interest in politics and breaking news. Rural Americans pay close attention to both local and national politics, showcasing their deep concern for large-scale issues, even if they live in remote areas.
The Issues that Rural Communities Face
These communities face real struggles that are often overlooked, as public perception paints their conflicts as shallow. One notable example is the disparities that emerged during the COVID-19 pandemic when geographic isolation limited rural residents’ access to proper healthcare. Rural counties had higher rates of COVID-19 deaths compared to urban areas, which could be attributed to the aging hospital infrastructure and the shortage of ICU beds, ventilators, and specialty care.
In addition, by assuming that discussions of rural America pertain only to White populations, people grossly overlook the voices and concerns of rural minority groups. In southern Black rural America, the legacies of slavery and the Jim Crow era atrocities are still connected to poverty and denial of economic mobility. Furthermore, education is noticeably hard to attain for rural Native Americans, and a majority of them struggle to secure occupations, leading to high poverty rates in comparison to that of urban areas.
Shifting the narrative on rural towns is essential to highlight pressing, overlooked issues that need to be addressed. There is much to appreciate and learn from these communities. Their experiences and stories contribute to the rich and diverse American culture, which I have had the privilege of hearing the backgrounds of people in my own town. This side of America should no longer remain in the shadows but instead receive the appreciation and attention it deserves.
By: Linda Zhang Edited By: Sofía García Andrés