A Kentucky Town Aims to Shine Long After the Great American Eclipse
The small city of Hopkinsville had its day in the sun — and dark — on August 21, as an estimated 150,000 out-of-town guests swelled the city’s population by a factor of five. Having company is always a good incentive to spruce things up. Will the town’s careful planning for […]
WV Flood Response Ready to Assist with Harvey as Relief Continues In State
As rain continues to fall throughout southeastern Texas from hurricane Harvey, Governor Jim Justice announced West Virginia is prepared to send resources to assist with emergency efforts, including members of the West Virginia National Guard. Meanwhile, disaster assistance continues in northern counties that experiences flooding in late July. “West Virginia […]
Teaching Teachers About Trauma Helps Kids Learn
Liam Rusmisel is a different kid this year. On the first day of kindergarten he walked into the classroom, head held high, according to his teachers. This is no small feat for a kid who had a bit of a rough start to last year. When Liam started preschool in […]
Coal Country Tech Job Program Heads For New Round
Last summer Melissa Anderson was unemployed and trying to keep her Pike County, Kentucky, home from falling into foreclosure. “I built it,” she said. “And, you know, for me to lose that home would have been devastating.” Anderson was among more than 800 people who applied for a little more […]
Birthing Facilities Continue to Close in WV, Decreasing Access to Care
Fifty years ago there were around 65 birth facilities in West Virginia. Now, there are only 24, which means pregnant women have to travel farther to give birth and, often, for prenatal care. Take Deana Lucion, for example. Lucion was 20 weeks pregnant when the last remaining obstetrician in McDowell […]
How #NoHateInMyHoller Became the War Cry for Appalachia
Eastern Kentucky artist Lacy Hale created the phrase for a work of art to protest a neo-Nazi rally in Pikeville, Kentucky. She never expected it to become a rallying cry of anti-racists throughout the Appalachian region. Lacy Hale, 36, grew up in Eastern Kentucky as part of the sixth generation […]
‘He’s a Mini Version of my Dad’
“I hope he becomes a God-serving young man, that he loves everybody as God loves us.” Jakari’s favorite food is chicken nuggets. His favorite word is “No.” He likes to play basketball with his mini-basketball hoop and watch “Blaze and the Monster Machines” and “PAW Patrol.” At age 2, and […]
Coal Mining Jobs Are Down, Fatalities Are Up – Why?
At a time when we ought to see fewer deaths from coal mining, the number of fatalities has increased compared to last year. The greed of coal tycoons and politicians (who are sometimes one and the same) is the reason. In the first seven months of 2017 there have been […]
Strip Mining Science: Trump Administration Stops Mining Health Study
The Perry County Public Library in Hazard, Kentucky, lies along Black Gold Boulevard — a name that nods to the wealth the coal from these hills has generated. On a recent Tuesday evening, however, the library was the venue for a hearing about the full costs of extracting that coal. […]
A Brighter Future Depends on Dealing with Painful Racial Past
More than a half-century ago, 12-year-old Ray Johnson tested the limits of the newly enacted Civil Rights Act in his hometown of Athens, Tennessee. He didn’t get too far. About a week ago, my friend Ray Johnson brought me a copy of an old newspaper article with the headline, “Negro […]