“(De)constructing NASCAR Space”: A Black Placemaking Analysis of Fan Agency, Mobility, and Resistance

This article examines how blackness is not only situated within sporting spaces, but also, and more narrowly, experienced within a historically and predominantly White sporting space—that of NASCAR. To explore and define Black individuals’ racialized experiences and movements as NASCAR fans from the...

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Main Author: Joshua D. Vadeboncoeur
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2023-01-01
Series:Societies
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4698/13/2/23
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author Joshua D. Vadeboncoeur
author_facet Joshua D. Vadeboncoeur
author_sort Joshua D. Vadeboncoeur
collection DOAJ
description This article examines how blackness is not only situated within sporting spaces, but also, and more narrowly, experienced within a historically and predominantly White sporting space—that of NASCAR. To explore and define Black individuals’ racialized experiences and movements as NASCAR fans from their perspective, this article uses a qualitative approach as grounded in narrative inquiry. Findings suggest that Black fans shift the otherwise oppressive geographies of NASCAR into sites of belongingness, celebration, and enjoyment, which advances the theoretical understanding of how “White spaces” can be contested through processes of racialized resistance. Thus, through the process of Black placemaking, Black fans construct and employ practices to transform their geographic “immobility” (both discursive and physical) into a reality that subverts racism and White supremacy more broadly.
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spelling doaj.art-182030774f04426f92667a198d30bca92023-11-16T23:15:25ZengMDPI AGSocieties2075-46982023-01-011322310.3390/soc13020023“(De)constructing NASCAR Space”: A Black Placemaking Analysis of Fan Agency, Mobility, and ResistanceJoshua D. Vadeboncoeur0Department of Management and Accountancy, University of North Carolina at Asheville, Asheville, NC 28804, USAThis article examines how blackness is not only situated within sporting spaces, but also, and more narrowly, experienced within a historically and predominantly White sporting space—that of NASCAR. To explore and define Black individuals’ racialized experiences and movements as NASCAR fans from their perspective, this article uses a qualitative approach as grounded in narrative inquiry. Findings suggest that Black fans shift the otherwise oppressive geographies of NASCAR into sites of belongingness, celebration, and enjoyment, which advances the theoretical understanding of how “White spaces” can be contested through processes of racialized resistance. Thus, through the process of Black placemaking, Black fans construct and employ practices to transform their geographic “immobility” (both discursive and physical) into a reality that subverts racism and White supremacy more broadly.https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4698/13/2/23agencyauto racingblacknessracespacesport
spellingShingle Joshua D. Vadeboncoeur
“(De)constructing NASCAR Space”: A Black Placemaking Analysis of Fan Agency, Mobility, and Resistance
Societies
agency
auto racing
blackness
race
space
sport
title “(De)constructing NASCAR Space”: A Black Placemaking Analysis of Fan Agency, Mobility, and Resistance
title_full “(De)constructing NASCAR Space”: A Black Placemaking Analysis of Fan Agency, Mobility, and Resistance
title_fullStr “(De)constructing NASCAR Space”: A Black Placemaking Analysis of Fan Agency, Mobility, and Resistance
title_full_unstemmed “(De)constructing NASCAR Space”: A Black Placemaking Analysis of Fan Agency, Mobility, and Resistance
title_short “(De)constructing NASCAR Space”: A Black Placemaking Analysis of Fan Agency, Mobility, and Resistance
title_sort de constructing nascar space a black placemaking analysis of fan agency mobility and resistance
topic agency
auto racing
blackness
race
space
sport
url https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4698/13/2/23
work_keys_str_mv AT joshuadvadeboncoeur deconstructingnascarspaceablackplacemakinganalysisoffanagencymobilityandresistance