S-Town Reflection

S-Town represents the towns that I recognize as the real America. Plagued with racism, homophobia, and prejudice, S Town is a symbol of all the values this country was found on. I have seen people like the characters in the story. But never the whole town. As a Black man, a town like this is not one that I would ever step foot in. They kill each other and are able to get away with it. I don’t want to see what they would do to a Black man. The best term to describe the characters in this podcast is “rednecks.” For a moment I thought there might have been neo Nazi’s in the town due to the multiple bald haircuts. The behavior is seen in this town in one of rural southern slave master culture.

Towns like this police themselves. The citizens decide how justice should be given out. It is reminiscent of Jim Crow days. I wouldn’t be surprised if the characters in the podcast would have thought they were still in the Jim Crow Era. These towns were everybody knows each other is a dangerous setting. Usually, anyone with authority dictates the laws. This cultural authority is the reason why unsolved murders occur in places like these. At one point, many towns in the metro Atlanta area where like this. I used to live in Covington Georgia, a redneck town that became invaded by people of color due to gentrification. With the blend of these opposite cultures, I have been targeted due to the fact that I am Black. I could only imagine how life would be if Covington was still an all-white town.

Despite the racism, S-Town does dive into a complex topic dealing with homophobia. Through the character of John B. Macklemore, the podcast manages to represent the struggles homosexuals experience in these type of communities. Towns like this can be violently homophobic. Shedding light on this issue and exploring the mental health of people in communities like these left a positive impact on me.