Propertied bodies: race, welfare, and the carceral state the Texas way

Emblematic of the Sunbelt’s lead in the United States’ transition into a carceral state, this article presents Texas as a case study to employ Cheryl Harris’ concept of “whiteness as property.” Focusing on Texas – a historically conservative state with a weak welfare infrastructure and persistently high incarceration rates – the article posits two arguments. First, it contends that ostensibly race-neutral welfare and penal policies operate as mechanisms for institutionalizing whiteness as property, thereby reinforcing a racialized class hierarchy and sustaining white privilege even among the poor. Second, it shows that in states such as Texas, where racial demographics are rapidly changing, whiteness continues to persist by adapting and reconfiguring the boundaries of privilege and oppression. Thus, the article offers a valuable lens through which to examine how shifting racial demographics, neoliberal economics, and the propertization of whiteness determine state-level governance and foreshadow national trends.