Young, Appalachian whites are changing the conversation about race in rural communities that are predominately white. It is a joy to behold. I have watched, with unbridled joy, the crowds of predominantly young white people who have poured into the streets, chanting “Black Lives Matter” in places as overwhelmingly white […]
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Driving between Pocahontas and Boissevain in southwestern Virginia, it’s easy to miss the mouth of Haynes Branch tucked into the woods along State Route 644. Like much of central Appalachia, this landscape of hills and hollows west of the Bluestone River in Tazewell County owes its existence to water. There’s […]
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As rural areas reopen for business, questions remain about what precautions are expected of us and what we can reasonably expect from our neighbors. Much is still unknown about the SARS-CoV-2 virus. So let’s look back at how we managed a different one – HIV. It was the best of […]
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“Next week, classes will be online, but we’ve got an hour to brainstorm ideas for our environmental education class,” I told my students. That was March 12, 2020. After a week of monitoring the news, the surreal had happened: The threat of the coronavirus consumed the small campus where I’d […]
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Teenagers in the United States are informed about their political world and capable of effectively evaluating political leaders, including President Donald Trump. This statement runs counter to stereotypes that adults tend to hold about teens. Ask most adults to describe the political abilities of the typical American adolescent and you […]
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“Hey, Bub. It’s Bill Withers.” Those were the words that greeted me the first time I spoke with the songwriter behind “Lean on Me,” “Just the Two of Us,” “Lovely Day” and “Grandma’s Hands,” who passed away on Monday, March 30, at the age of 81. We had arranged for […]
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