Mark Peterson: The Past is Never Dead

The Past is Never Dead is a trilogy of books by Mark Peterson examining the American political landscape over the past ten years as the countrys experiment with democracy has evolved into a cold civil war. The first book Political Theatre documents the lead-up to the 2016 presidential election and traces the rise of Donald Trump as a leader of the new right. The second volume White Noise began as a means to understand the divisive mood of the country following the election and captures the white nationalism and autocracy which evolved during Trumps time in office. Peterson explores the rhetoric of the White House on immigration and Muslim bans, and how this echoes and intersects with nationalism, Western chauvinism, neo-Nazis, and all those calling for an ethnostate in America. Finally, in The Fourth Wall, we see the voters leave their chairs in the audience and take to the stage, becoming their own political figuressubjects include Stop the Steal protesters and the 6 January 2021 attack on the United States Capitol. The Past is Never Dead tackles Americäs schisms head-on, portraying a country on edge. With his trademark flash and high-contrast approach, Petersons dramatic images are X-rays of Americäs complex political culture: Democracy is a messy form of government, he declares, and I try and capture it in all its chaos.