What is White Trash?

The other day I was watching the news and the story was about NASCAR wanting to open another track near Seattle, Washington. The comment that stood out to me though was a gentleman who said he didn't want NASCAR there because, to quote him, 'It attracts those people, you know white trash people. We don't need white trash in Seattle'.

And that comment made me think does America really know what white trash is or do they just have an idea of what they think white trash is? Are you white trash if you live in a trailer? Are you white trash because you use your home and lawn area as say an auto body shop? What is white trash really?

The first thing I thought of though as I watched the news was, 'I'm sure if I looked hard enough I could find 'white trash' in Seattle'. Living in Florida for the past 15 years has opened my eye's to the world America see's as white trash. Children having babies, motors hanging in tree's, car's dead on lawns for 5+ years, school kids still using racial terms towards others to start fights, women having children by several different men. But I also grew up in New Hampshire and even in New Hampshire this world exists, maybe not to the extent that Florida has it, but it's still there. Except in New Hampshire the term I've normally heard is 'Country Bumpkins'.

The point is though that America looks at the south and based on certain stereotypes they seem to assume everyone is a toothless looser who beat their wives, punch the kids and kick the dog on a daily basis while listening to country music and watching Rassling on tv. This isn't a representation of everyone from the south. To be honest mobile homes are affordable housing, and sometimes they are out of even a lower income person's range. The normal trailer here in Florida starts at around $20,000 which is about the price of the houses I have seen in certain parts of Niagara Falls, New York. Trailer living also doesn't consist heavily of people who are poor or women who have been married and divorced 7 times, they consist of everyday people who go to work everyday just like you and me and some of those people hold high level jobs.