“No Tyson in Tongie!”: The Battle to Protect a Rural Way of Life in Kansas*

Abstract

Political mobilizations in small towns have come to play a disproportionate role in today’s national politics. This article examines the conditions giving rise to small‐town mobilizations through an in‐depth case study of Tonganoxie, Kansas. Residents of this town mounted a massive campaign to block the opening of a Tyson chicken processing plant in 2017. The article draws on interviews, observations, a newspaper claims database, and extractions from the “No Tyson in Tongie” Facebook group page. The article maintains that a racialized cultural framework (“rural idyll”) among White middle‐class residents helped them perceive the plant as an existential threat. Social networks, sustained through social media, enabled the same residents to mobilize in a fast and forceful manner. We suggest that in “hybrid” towns (partially rural and suburban), the “rural idyll” is politically decisive. It unites recently settled and established residents in battles to defend a particularly racialized and classed way of life.

Territorial and Human Geography Challenges: How Can Smart Villages Support Rural Development and Population Inclusion?

“…Seeking the rural idyll though, threatens the authenticity and the physiognomy of the countryside and transforms it into an urban playground (Rogers 2017). This aspect is putting countryside at risk of becoming hybrid (Nicholls et al 2020) in an attempt to offer a particular view of rural life to the visitors or newcomers.…”