When Racism is Your City's Brand

A Case Study of DEI Failure in Virginia City, NV

Over the weekend, the Virginia City Tourism Commission (VCTC) issued a statement to distance the destination from a racist incident documented in a viral TikTok video.

The Incident

• Ricky Johnson recorded the video on August 2, 2024, documenting the veiled threats uttered by Gary Miller at the kick-off event for Hot August Nights, a 10-day classic car event taking place in Virginia City, NV.
• Johnson was performing his job by collecting signatures for a petition to cap attorney fees for an upcoming Nevada State ballot initiative.
• Miller addresses Johnson directly and refers to a nearby hanging tree, alluding to the lynching of Black people throughout America’s history.
• Miller’s wife, Janice Cusack Miller later appears in the video and physically ushers Johnson away despite his protests from the Firehouse Saloon, which she and her husband run. Her approach is both patronizing and sinister, knowing how other white women have endangered the lives of Black men–from Emmett Till’s accuser Carolyn Bryant Donham to Amy Cooper who accosted Christin Cooper a few years ago while he was bird watching.
• Tiffany Miller, their daughter, rounds out the trio’s racism by taunting Johnson about “the city’s history,” implying that as a Black man local law enforcement would not help him.
• UPDATE: The Millers were arrested by the Storey County Sheriff's Office on August 7, 2024.

The Response

The VCTC published a statement on the following day to its social feeds, denouncing the incident and claiming the city is, in fact, “welcoming” and they are working to be “inclusive and open to all.”

It is a paltry, anemic response given the situation.

• The organization refers obliquely to the incident, glossing over the egregious nature of the racism Johnson, who was an out-of-town visitor, experienced.
• No apology is offered to Johnson.
• The language of inclusion is co-opted to suggest a strong organizational commitment to anti-racism but without any commitment to further investigation or action.

The Receipts

The public gathered the receipts quickly on social media, sharing reviews from past visitors that clearly demonstrate that racism is, in fact, the city’s brand.

Despite the VCTC’s attempt to characterize this latest occurrence as an isolated incident, racialized people have long felt unwelcome and unsafe when visiting Virginia City, NV. After all, residents in 1869 attempted to expel all Chinese immigrants from the town, and it may have been a sundown town.

A DEI Fail

The disconnect between the commission’s public statement and its actions highlight a common pitfall: performative allyship that undermines Diversity, Equity, and Inclusivity (DEI) efforts.

Personally, I see three signs that indicate the VCTC has made only token gestures toward creating a safe, inclusive destination.

1. Centering whiteness

The commission’s vision is “to be a destination where diverse visitors from the region, nation and world come to experience the authentic history of the Comstock and learn how different cultures came together to initiate the technology, skills, arts, and culture of the next century.”

While the VCTC claims to celebrate the diverse communities who helped build this mining boom town, the content posted on its website and social channels is decidedly monotone.?

Scroll their site to see for yourself; search for “Chinese,” “Black,” or “Mexican” using the site’s search function and you won’t turn up any stories about their contributions. This is deliberate erasure of the very cultures the commission purports to want visitors to understand.

The VCTC’s visual assets further marginalize racialized people by centering whiteness. The intentional choice about who gets to be seen in frame carries over to its Instagram feed where one poster explicitly calls out the lack of diversity in direct response to the commission’s August 3 public statement.

2. No meaningful commitment to inclusivity

If you scan the public version of the VCTC’s 2023 Strategic Plan, you won’t find any explicit statements or commitments to DEI. When the organization thinks about how to use their resources to meet their own vision and goals, transforming the city into a welcoming, safe destination for racialized visitors never warrants a mention.

Further searches on the site only turn up a handful of plans and meeting notes where diversity is referenced in 2020, including a discussion to establish a subcommittee “with people who represent the diversity and inclusion that the VCTC is looking for.” These cursory mentions are likely in response to the tragic death of George Floyd that summer, which led to widespread racial unrest and renewed corporate commitments to DEI.

Based on the current incident, I suspect these efforts eventually evaporated due to a lack of meaningful intention by the organization’s leaders.

3. Lack of alignment with locals and merchants on DEI

Visitors often want to interact with locals, because the experience enhances their understanding of a destination’s history and culture.

However, the Millers and the gleeful onlookers who refused to step in on behalf of Johnson this past weekend created a hostile environment, driving future visitors from coming to Virginia City, NV.

The VCTC isn’t solely responsible for creating a welcoming atmosphere but they are pivotal in managing the city’s brand and attracting tourists.

The failure to engage and educate local residents and merchants on the importance of inclusivity suggests a disconnect between the commission and the community, which is critical for a cohesive DEI strategy.

I hope the VCTC looks at this moment as an opportunity to reassess their role and responsibilities to DEI, and address the gap between their stated values and their actions.