‘Fixing a problem we didn’t cause’: the Black Appalachian activists cultivating community power

A coal miner, his wife and two of their children in Bertha Hill, West Virginia, part of the Appalachia region in 1938. Photograph: Marion Post Wolcott/Farm Security Administration-Office of War Information, Library of Congress

This post was originally published on The Guardian.

Black organizers in Appalachia are challenging the common perception of the region as predominantly white. Though only 10% of Appalachia’s population is Black, they face disproportionate environmental and economic hardships. Activists like Staysha Quentrill, Marcia Dinkins, and Femeika Elliott are working to improve health, environmental justice, and food security. Dinkins, founder of the Black Appalachian Coalition, aims to dismantle the “whitewashed” narrative of Appalachia and highlight Black contributions and struggles in the region.

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