Straight White American Jesus Purity Culture and the Politics of White Innocence: Renee Good, Patriarchy, and Mar a Lago Face
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Feb 1, 2026 Sarah Moslener, historian and author of After Purity and creator of the Pure White podcast, explores purity culture as a racialized system. She traces how white womanhood became a national symbol of innocence. They discuss aesthetics of compliance, January 6 performances of innocence, contrasting racialized state violence, and the risks for white women who defect from racial privilege.
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Purity Culture Is Racially Rooted
- Sarah Moslener links modern evangelical purity culture to 19th-century slavery and Victorian gender norms that racialized sexual virtue.
- She argues purity functions to label bodies as "good" or "bad," shaping who counts as citizen and who is excluded.
White Womanhood As A National Symbol
- Moslener explains white womanhood became a national symbol, embodying innocence, civilization, and moral authority.
- That symbolic role rewarded white women with status and justified racial violence under the guise of protection.
Purity Weaponized For Nationalism
- White women's perceived purity gets weaponized to support nationalism, segregation, and authoritarian projects.
- Moslener notes this rhetoric historically enabled lynching and continues to shape anti-immigrant and racist discourse.
