WHA Presidential Address 2023: Searching for a Redemptive West

Abstract

Abstract This essay, a written version of the author’s October 27, 2023 Western History Association presidential address, asks about the West as space for redemption and exodus. Do Civil War histories and western histories offer hope of healing from the violence they engender? Or is every hopeful moment made destructive by violence, greed, and cultural blinders? Damaged Civil War soldiers went west and post-war Los Angeles became a place where many people imagined rebuilding their lives. White dreams proved exclusive: Angelenos burned out Chinese immigrants and shattered the western dreams of Black residents. Does writing new histories and ensuring that such violence is marked and remembered move toward hope? The essay considers both Civil War Era and contemporary redemption. Can remaking civic spaces around commemorations offer redemption? Los Angeles Chinese communities and their persistent efforts to hold space marking the1871 massacre as the city recreated downtown again and again could offer a model.