source : the age
The frontier myth is a recurring trope in the American story – the idea that you can move somewhere, start from scratch and create a prosperous life. Right now, that frontier is not the west but the United States’ southernmost state of Florida.
A post-Covid boom, turbocharged by the decision of rich-listers and content creators to base their operations in the state, has coincided with Donald Trump’s presidency and the use of his Palm Beach home base, Mar-a-Lago, as a de facto seat of power.
The state is humming and at the centre of this shift in political, social and cultural power is the glitzy, glamorous city of Miami, where The Sydney Morning Herald North America correspondent Michael Koziol and photographer Audrey Richardson spent some time – aptly – for our July 4 cover story.
For anyone who has thought of Florida as typically either a sunny retiree haven or a magnet for theme-park devotees, the piece provides a surprising and fascinating snapshot of a city at the peak of a boom cycle.
– Melissa Stevens
