Black journalist Rich Benjamin spent two years living in the “whitest places in America” for his book, Searching For Whitopia (Hyperion), out today (Oct. 6).
He lived in St. George, Utah – where he took up golf and loved it – Forsyth County, Georgia, and Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, where he “counted more Confederate flags than black people.”
He says the predominantly white town is touted as “paradise,” but the lack of diversity is troubling.
Though Benjamin’s experiences in “whitopias” were pleasant, he was admittedly bored in the perfect towns.
In Forsyth County, Georgia, there isn’t much to do unless you’re a homeowner who’s invited to HOA-organized barbecues.
He did attend a conservative Republican breakfast forum and a three-day retreat alongside an Aryan Nations group, and the “awkward” meetings made Benjamin realize that even in modern times, America remains segregated.
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