Challenging SpaceX on the US–Mexico border: Value struggles against racial authoritarian neoliberalism

Abstract

SpaceX’s launch site on the US–Mexico border, in the Rio Grande Valley, is an ideal example of the interconnected relationship between racial capitalism and authoritarian neoliberalism, the neoliberal expropriation of spaces and communities, and the tapestries of resistance weaved against these processes. The privatisation of space exploration is an illustration of the development of authoritarian modes of governance that are designed to facilitate such expropriation of spaces and communities. In the case considered in this article, these processes are directly related to the development of racial capitalism on the US–Mexico border. This article places the focus on how racial authoritarian neoliberalism is a response to capitalism’s inability to successfully impose a hegemonic project.